ASUU STAGES NATIONWIDE PROTESTS, REJECTS FG’S LOAN SCHEME, THREATENS STRIKE. (PHOTOS).

 ASUU Stages Nationwide Protests, Rejects FG’s Loan Scheme, Threatens Strike

Members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) across Nigeria took to the streets on Tuesday to protest what they described as the Federal Government’s persistent neglect of their demands, warning of a potential nationwide strike if unresolved issues are not addressed urgently.

At the University of Jos, ASUU members staged a demonstration and rejected the recently introduced Tertiary Institution Staff Support Fund loan scheme. Branch chairperson Joseph Molwus called the initiative a “poison chalice” designed to deepen lecturers’ financial hardship rather than resolve it. “Lecturers do not need loans but the payment of legitimate entitlements, including withheld salaries, allowances, and arrears,” Molwus told journalists, questioning how the government could expect lecturers to borrow money for basic needs while owing them significant arrears.

Similar protests erupted at the University of Lagos, University of Benin, Federal University Gusau in Zamfara State, and Federal University Dutse in Jigawa State. Lecturers, carrying placards, demanded the payment of salary arrears, improved welfare, and the renegotiation of the 2009 FG-ASUU agreement. At Federal University Gusau, ASUU Chairman Abdulrahman Adamu decried the government’s reliance on TETFUND for university funding while lecturers face severe hardships, including unpaid salaries from the 2020 strike, promotion arrears, and wage award arrears spanning 25 to 35 months.

In Dutse, ASUU Chairman Isma’il Ahmad highlighted the inadequacy of current salaries, accusing the government of ignoring lecturers’ plight. The union demanded the release of funds to settle outstanding obligations, including unpaid salaries, earned academic allowances, promotion arrears, revitalisation funds, wage awards, and unremitted third-party deductions.

ASUU expressed frustration over the government’s failure to conclude the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement, accusing it of abandoning collective bargaining principles despite years of engagement and committee reports. The union warned that the industrial harmony enjoyed by universities for over two years is now at risk, with lecturers in despair over unfulfilled promises.

The protests also referenced President Bola Tinubu’s 2022 campaign pledge to prevent university strikes. ASUU members voiced disappointment that, two years into his administration, major issues remain unresolved. They urged the president to engage directly with union leaders to avert a crisis and “renew the hope” of lecturers and the education sector.

While reaffirming their commitment to dialogue, ASUU cautioned that patience is wearing thin. The union warned that without urgent action to address unpaid salaries, allowances, and the stalled 2009 agreement, Nigeria’s universities risk another prolonged shutdown.

One more photo below.