The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has threatened to embark on another nationwide strike over the non-payment of lecturers’ allowances, accusing the Federal Government of failing to honour agreements reached with the union.
The union said university lecturers across the country have gone 18 months without receiving their Earned Academic Allowances (EAA), despite repeated promises from government officials that the payments would be integrated into monthly salaries.
ASUU President, Chris Piwuna, expressed frustration over the delay, warning that lecturers are gradually losing patience with what he described as poor implementation of agreements signed with the government.
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According to him, the union had agreed with the Federal Government that the allowances would be mainstreamed to prevent continuous accumulation of arrears, but the arrangement has allegedly not been fully implemented.
He also criticised delays surrounding promotion arrears and other welfare packages meant for university lecturers, saying many institutions are struggling to cope with the situation.
Piwuna noted that several ASUU branches have already begun mounting pressure on the national leadership to take decisive action, warning that the growing anger among lecturers could trigger another industrial crisis in public universities.
The ASUU president further accused the Federal Ministry of Education of handling the agreement in what he called a “haphazard manner,” insisting that the union would no longer tolerate repeated delays and unfulfilled promises.
The latest development has sparked concerns among students and parents, many of whom fear a fresh shutdown of public universities if both parties fail to reach a resolution in the coming weeks.
ASUU and the Federal Government had earlier signed a renegotiated agreement aimed at ending years of disputes and frequent strike actions in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.
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