ASUU Threatens Nationwide University Shutdown Over Unpaid Salaries

The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has threatened to shut down academic activities in public universities across Nigeria if the Federal Government and state governments fail to address the union’s outstanding demands.

ASUU President, Christopher Piwuna, disclosed this on Friday in a statement following an emergency meeting of the union’s National Executive Council at the University of Abuja.

The union said it could resume industrial action without further warning because several issues contained in its December 2025 agreement with the government had yet to be fully implemented.

Among the demands is the payment of 3.5 months of salaries withheld from university lecturers during previous industrial action. The union is also demanding the remittance of billions of naira deducted from the salaries of its members.

ASUU said the December 2025 agreement was reached after more than eight years of negotiations and struggles over the welfare and working conditions of university lecturers.

However, the union expressed concern that the Federal Government and some state governments had failed to complete the implementation of the agreement.

According to ASUU, the continued delay in addressing the outstanding issues has created fresh tension within the university system and placed the welfare of academics under pressure.

The union warned that it may direct its members across the country to withdraw their services if the government fails to take immediate action.

ASUU said the decision to consider another nationwide strike was based on the need to protect the interests and welfare of Nigerian academics and ensure that previous agreements reached with the government are respected.

The union also called on the relevant authorities to take concrete steps to resolve the outstanding matters before the situation worsens.

The latest threat comes as public universities continue academic activities following previous disruptions caused by industrial disputes involving university workers.

ASUU maintained that it remained willing to engage with the government on the issues but would not accept continued delays in fulfilling agreements already reached.

The union said the government’s response to its demands would determine whether academic activities would continue normally or whether lecturers would be asked to withdraw their services nationwide.

The development has raised concerns over another possible disruption to the university calendar, with students and parents potentially facing fresh uncertainty if the dispute leads to a strike.

ASUU therefore urged the government to act quickly on the outstanding issues and prevent another nationwide shutdown of public universities.