The Academic Staff Union of Universities, (ASUU), has threatened to embark on another nationwide strike over outstanding salary arrears and what it described as the Federal Government’s unsatisfactory implementation of the December 2025 agreement.
ASUU President, Professor Christopher Piwuna, issued the warning in a statement on Friday September 11, 2026, in Abuja, following the union’s emergency National Executive Council, (NEC) meeting.
Piwuna said the agreement, which followed more than eight years of negotiations and industrial struggles, had yet to be fully and satisfactorily implemented by the Federal Government and some state governments. He warned that failure to resolve the outstanding issues could compel the union to mobilise its members for another nationwide industrial action.
“Unless immediate and concrete steps are taken to fully and comprehensively address issues bordering on the welfare and well-being of Nigerian academics, ASUU-NEC will not accept any blame,” he said.
The ASUU president said the union could commence “a nationwide strike action within the shortest time possible” if the government failed to meet its outstanding obligations. According to him, three-and-a-half months out of the seven-and-a-half months’ salaries withheld during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari were still outstanding, despite President Bola Tinubu’s payment of four months.
“We note with regrets that nothing has changed about the three-and-half months’ salaries left out of the seven-and-half months withheld by the Buhari Government since we last addressed the public,” he said.
Piwuna said the unpaid salaries had placed university lecturers under serious financial and psychological pressure, particularly as rising inflation had substantially reduced the value of the outstanding payments. He further expressed concern over billions of naira reportedly deducted from lecturers’ salaries for pensions, cooperative societies and union check-off dues but allegedly not remitted for several months.
The ASUU president warned that the union would consider industrial action if the alleged unremitted deductions and other unresolved welfare matters were not urgently addressed.
Piwuna however commended Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, and other governors for implementing the 2025 agreement, while calling on states that were yet to comply to take immediate steps to prevent industrial disputes. He also criticised Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, over the two-year extension of the tenure of the Vice-Chancellor of Osun State University, Professor Clement Adebooye.
According to Piwuna, the extension was inconsistent with the university’s law and could undermine university autonomy while encouraging practices the union had repeatedly resisted. He therefore appealed to Governor Adeleke to reverse the decision.
The ASUU president also expressed support for the Nigeria Labour Congress President, Joe Ajaero’s, call for an immediate review of the national minimum wage, arguing that such a measure would help reduce the effects of the prevailing economic hardship on workers.
Piwuna appealed to students, parents, labour leaders, media practitioners and other stakeholders to intervene in the developing situation and help prevent another disruption of academic activities.
“ASUU cannot guarantee uninterrupted academic calendar at the expense of the existential needs of our members,” Piwuna said.
He stressed that ASUU remained committed to dialogue with both the Federal Government and state governments, but warned that failure to record satisfactory progress on the union’s demands could force it to end the current peace and resume nationwide strike action.
