The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Sokoto Zone, has issued a stern warning to the Federal Government, demanding urgent action on lingering issues affecting Nigeria’s public universities or risk another nationwide strike.
The warning followed a protest on Tuesday in Sokoto, which brought together members of the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto (UDUS), Sokoto State University (SSU), and Shehu Shagari University of Education (SSUES) branches of the union.
In a joint protest letter signed by Prof. Muhammad Nurudeen Almustapha (ASUU Chairperson, UDUS), Dr. Bello Usman (ASUU Chairperson, SSU), and Dr. Shamsudeen Kabir (ASUU Chairperson, SSUES), the union accused the government of “deception and deliberate neglect” of agreements reached with it over the years.
ASUU’s demands include:
- Approval and implementation of the Alhaji Yayale Ahmed Report on the renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement.
- Payment of three and a half months of withheld salaries and outstanding promotion arrears from 2018–2024.
- Release of all third-party deductions withheld by IPPIS, running into billions of naira.
- Payment of outstanding 25–35% salary arrears.
- A clear and sustainable framework for funding and revitalising public universities.
- An end to the alleged victimisation of ASUU members at LASU, Prince Abubakar Audu University, and FUTO.
The union warned that the government’s failure to address these issues would leave it with “no choice but to resume another round of industrial action.”
“The government has destroyed our trust. The responsibility now lies with them to regain it and avert another nationwide strike,” the statement read.
ASUU stressed that the Yayale Ahmed Report—submitted in February 2025—touches on critical issues such as university autonomy, academic freedom, improved conditions of service, and sustainable funding. The union described the continued delay in its implementation as “a dangerous threat” to Nigeria’s educational system.
Reaffirming its readiness to act, the union declared: “The survival of any nation is umbilically tied to the health of its public universities. Therefore, we say to Mr President: let the academics breathe! The struggle continues.”
By Usman Mohammed Binji
