The Non-Academic Staff Union of Universities (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) have issued a fresh seven-day ultimatum to the Federal Government, threatening to shut down public universities nationwide if their outstanding demands are not met.
In a joint letter dated September 12, and addressed to the Minister of Education, the two unions under the Joint Action Committee (JAC) accused the government of insensitivity and deliberate neglect of agreements reached with them.
The unions are demanding the payment of two months’ withheld salaries, arrears arising from the 25 and 35 per cent wage awards, as well as a fair share of the ₦50 billion earned allowances released to the university system.
The letter, signed by Mohammed Ibrahim and Prince Peters Adeyemi, presidents of SSANU and NASU respectively, stated that the exclusion of non-academic staff in inter-university centres from the allowances amounted to “blatant injustice.”
They recalled that a tripartite committee was agreed upon in July 2025 to address the unfair disbursement but lamented that nothing had been done since.
“Government has continued to renege on its promises. Our members are frustrated by the deliberate delay in paying withheld salaries, the unfair distribution of earned allowances, and the stalling of the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN-NASU/SSANU agreement,” the statement partly read.
The unions further noted that while the renegotiation of ASUU’s 2009 agreement had been concluded, the non-teaching unions have been sidelined since December 2024, despite the inauguration of a renegotiation committee in October of the same year.
They warned that unless their grievances are resolved, their members would embark on a full-blown strike action after the ultimatum lapses.
The looming action adds to the uncertainty in the nation’s universities as the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is also currently in dispute with the government over similar unmet demands.
PLATFORM TIMES reports that if implemented, the strike could cripple academic and administrative activities across federal and state universities, piling more pressure on the already fragile education sector.
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