The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has criticised the Federal Government for its slow response to the union’s long-standing demands, as its 14-day ultimatum to avert a nationwide warning strike expires on Sunday.
President Bola Tinubu has reportedly directed relevant ministries to take urgent steps to prevent another disruption in Nigeria’s public universities.
But ASUU President, Professor Chris Piwuna, said the government’s last-minute effort to halt the planned strike came “too late.”
Speaking on Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Thursday, Piwuna accused the government, particularly the Ministry of Education, of failing to act within agreed timelines despite repeated meetings and correspondence.
“The problem we have with this government and the leadership in the Ministry of Education is that they are slow. They are slow in responding to our demands,” Piwuna said.
He explained that the union had earlier suspended plans for industrial action after the government requested three weeks to address its concerns, but no progress was made during that period.
“They gave us three weeks. We accepted it. We never heard a word from them until the three weeks elapsed,” he added.
According to Piwuna, communication from the government only resumed when ASUU threatened to begin strike action, a pattern he described as “discouraging and disrespectful.”
The ASUU president also expressed frustration over the government’s failure to conclude the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement, a long-standing issue at the centre of several past strikes.
“Our 2009 agreement that is being renegotiated is still undone. And two working days to a strike action, you come to appeal to us? I think the appeal has come a little too late,” Piwuna said.
ASUU has long demanded better funding for public universities, improved welfare for lecturers, and full implementation of previous agreements signed with the government.
The union last embarked on an eight-month strike in 2022, which paralysed academic activities across Nigerian universities and drew widespread criticism from students and parents.
With the current ultimatum set to expire on Sunday, the government faces renewed pressure to avert another round of industrial action that could disrupt the academic calendar nationwide.