ASUU Begins Nationwide Strike Over Delayed Salary Payments

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has begun a nationwide strike following the delay in paying university lecturers their June 2025 salaries.

The ASUU strike was confirmed on Monday in Abuja by the union’s president, Professor Chris Piwuna.

He explained that the action is based on an earlier decision by the union’s National Executive Council (NEC), which states that if salaries are not paid within three days after the due date, members should stop working.

Professor Piwuna said that lecturers at the University of Jos and the University of Abuja have already joined the strike. He made it clear that this is not a new negotiation tactic, but simply the union enforcing the “No Pay, No Work” rule that has already been agreed upon.

He expressed disappointment over the treatment of lecturers’ salaries by the government. 

According to him, since the lecturers were moved from the IPPIS payment platform to GIFMIS, their pay has often been delayed, sometimes for a week or even ten days. This has caused serious financial hardship for many university workers.

ASUU had earlier reached out to government officials, including the Minister of Education and the Accountant General of the Federation, to fix the issue, but nothing was done.

“We are just carrying out a decision already taken by NEC. Our members are really suffering, and this salary delay has made things worse. If we are not paid, we cannot work,” Professor Piwuna said.

He added that all universities affected by unpaid salaries are expected to join the ASUU strike. He also accused some officials, especially in the Office of the Accountant General, of intentionally frustrating university staff by delaying the release of salary funds.

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According to the ASUU president, the payment platform is not the problem. He believes that the delays are intentional, as there are no technical issues with how salaries are paid once the money reaches the universities.

In addition to the salary delays, ASUU is also calling for the government to pay the remaining N10 billion from the Earned Academic Allowance (EAA). The union was supposed to receive N50 billion, but so far, only N40 billion has been released.

“We are still expecting the N10 billion. We hope it is paid soon so that we don’t have to start another round of struggle,” Professor Piwuna warned.

As the ASUU strike spreads across universities, students and staff hope that the government will respond quickly to resolve the issue and restore normal academic activities.

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