The Academic Staff Union of Universities has threatened to reactivate its suspended nationwide strike if the Federal Government and state governments fail to resolve outstanding issues affecting university lecturers.
The union said it could order its members to withdraw their services “without any further notice,” citing the incomplete implementation of the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU agreement, unpaid salaries, and unremitted deductions from lecturers’ earnings.
ASUU President, Prof Christopher Piwuna, disclosed this in a statement titled Why ASUU May Go on Strike Again, issued on Friday following an emergency meeting of the union’s National Executive Council on 5 September 2026.
The union said the meeting resolved to notify the government and other stakeholders that another nationwide strike could be called at the shortest possible notice if its demands were not addressed.
“Unless immediate and concrete steps are taken to fully and comprehensively address issues bordering the welfare and well-being of Nigerian academics, ASUU-NEC will not accept any blame for calling out its members on a nationwide strike action within the shortest time possible,” the union said.
ASUU accused the Federal Government and several state governments of failing to fully implement the agreement reached in December 2025 after more than eight years of negotiations.
The agreement, which took effect in January 2026, includes a 40 percent increase in the emoluments of academic staff, alongside provisions on research funding, allowances, and other welfare issues. The Federal Government announced in February that it had begun implementing the salary increase and Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance.
The National Universities Commission also inaugurated an implementation monitoring committee in June to monitor compliance with the agreement and address emerging issues between the government and ASUU.
However, ASUU said implementation remained inadequate.
3.5 months’ salaries are unpaid
A major point of contention is the payment of salaries withheld during the eight-month strike under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
The union said 3.5 of the 7.5 months withheld remained unpaid, although it acknowledged that President Bola Tinubu’s administration had released 4 months.
According to ASUU, the outstanding salaries have caused lecturers “enormous financial and psychological discomforts,” particularly as the value of the withheld earnings has fallen by more than 50 percent because of currency devaluation since 2022.
The union also alleged that billions of naira deducted from lecturers’ salaries for pension contributions, cooperative societies and union check-off dues had not been remitted for several months.
It warned that it was “fully prepared” to mobilise its members for industrial action if the deductions were not properly accounted for and remitted.
Recent reports indicate that the issue of unremitted deductions has become one of the central grievances behind ASUU’s latest strike threat.
State universities under pressure
ASUU also accused several state governments of failing to implement the 2025 agreement in their universities.
The union commended Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, as well as the governments of Bauchi, Ekiti, Ogun, Benue, Yobe, Adamawa, Kebbi, Katsina and Borno for beginning implementation.
It said Kano, Edo, Plateau, Taraba, Gombe and Bayelsa states had indicated that they would begin implementation in September or October 2026.
ASUU warned other state governments against allowing their universities to descend into what it described as an “industrial crisis of monumental proportions”.
The Federal Ministry of Information had earlier acknowledged that implementation of the agreement was intended to improve academic staff welfare and promote stability in the university system.
ASUU condemns Osun varsity VC extension
The union also criticized the reported extension of the tenure of the Vice-Chancellor of Osun State University, Prof Clement Adebooye, by the state government.
ASUU argued that the university’s law provides for a single five-year tenure for vice-chancellors and accused the government of hurriedly amending the law to accommodate the extension.
It warned that the move could encourage sycophancy and administrative interference in the university system and trigger fresh tensions within the institution.
Union backs minimum wage review
Beyond the university sector, ASUU expressed concern about the wider economic situation in Nigeria.
The union argued that reported improvements in macroeconomic indicators had yet to translate into better living conditions for workers and other Nigerians.
It supported the call by the President of the Nigeria Labor Congress, Joe Ajaero, for an immediate review of the national minimum wage, saying workers’ purchasing power must be protected by linking wages to inflation.
ASUU urged students, parents, labor leaders, media organizations, and other Nigerians to intervene before the current disagreements escalate into another nationwide disruption of academic activities.
“ASUU cannot guarantee an uninterrupted academic calendar at the expense of the existential needs of our members,” it said.
The union, however, said it remained open to dialogue with the Federal and state governments.
It warned that responsibility for any disruption would fall on the authorities if they failed to address its demands.
“ASUU-NEC resolved to notify all concerned that the union may activate its suspended strike action without any further notice if the critical issues raised in this release are not speedily addressed,” the statement said.
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