The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has called off its two-week warning strike after intensive deliberations and renewed talks with the Federal Government on pending issues affecting public universities.
The announcement was made by the National President of ASUU, Prof. Chris Piwuna, during a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday. He said the decision followed an overnight meeting of the union’s National Executive Council (NEC), which ended around 4:00 a.m.
Prof. Piwuna explained that while the strike was prompted by the government’s delay in addressing the union’s long-standing demands, recent engagements with government representatives had yielded some progress.
“We have had useful engagements with representatives of the government to consider the response to the draft renegotiation of the 2009 agreements. However, we are definitely not where we were prior to the commencement of the strike,” he said.
ASUU had on Monday, October 13, embarked on a total and comprehensive warning strike over unmet demands. The union’s grievances include the failure to conclude the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN-ASUU agreement, non-payment of withheld three and a half months’ salaries, inadequate funding of public universities, and lack of revitalisation support.
Other demands are the cessation of what the union termed victimisation of lecturers at the Lagos State University (LASU), Prince Abubakar Audu University, and the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO). ASUU is also pushing for the payment of outstanding salary arrears of 25 to 35 percent, promotion arrears spanning over four years, and the release of withheld third-party deductions, including cooperative and union check-off dues.
Prof. Piwuna assured that the union remains committed to its advocacy for better working conditions, sustainable university funding, and improved welfare for academic staff across Nigerian universities.
