(DDM) – The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has accused the Federal Government of Nigeria of insincerity and deliberate delay tactics in resolving ongoing issues surrounding lecturers’ welfare and the long-awaited renegotiated agreement.
Diaspora Digital Media (DDM) reports that the University of Ibadan chapter of ASUU described the government’s approach to collective bargaining as frustrating, deceitful, and strategically designed to wear down the union’s demands.
Speaking during a live radio programme in Ibadan, the chapter’s chairman, Dr. Adefemi Afolabi, said university lecturers were compelled to embark on a two-week warning strike after waiting in vain for more than eight months for the signing of a renegotiated agreement with the Federal Government.
He lamented that instead of implementing the report of the Nimi Briggs Renegotiation Committee, the government announced yet another committee to begin discussions afresh, a move ASUU described as an attempt to waste time and frustrate progress.
According to Afolabi, the Federal Government’s actions show a lack of commitment to improving university education, adding that the constant shifting of goalposts has worsened morale among lecturers nationwide.
He revealed that many senior academics, including professors, are resigning in droves, while younger lecturers are relocating abroad in search of better pay and working conditions.
Afolabi noted that the mass exodus of intellectuals poses a serious threat to Nigeria’s education system, as the country continues to lose top-tier scholars to universities in Europe, North America, and the Middle East.
He warned that first-class graduates no longer view lecturing as a viable career, given the poor remuneration and unstable working environment.
“The warning strike,” he said, “is not about ego or politics. It is a desperate cry for fairness, survival, and the preservation of quality university education in Nigeria.”
ASUU has repeatedly accused the government of failing to honour several past agreements, including the 2009 FG-ASUU pact and subsequent memoranda of understanding signed after nationwide strikes in 2013, 2017, and 2020.
The latest warning strike by the University of Ibadan chapter signals what insiders describe as the beginning of a wider national agitation, as several other university branches have expressed readiness to join if negotiations remain stagnant.
Education analysts say the dispute once again exposes the fragile relationship between Nigerian university unions and the Federal Government, with successive administrations unable to resolve the funding and salary structure crises that have crippled the system for decades.
They note that poor infrastructure, unpaid allowances, and irregular promotions have pushed lecturers to the brink, while students continue to suffer academic disruptions.
In response to ASUU’s grievances, a senior government official who requested anonymity insisted that the administration was still committed to dialogue and reform, arguing that delays were caused by bureaucratic reviews and budgetary constraints.
However, ASUU maintains that the pattern of excuses reflects official deceit, not administrative challenges.
Observers warn that unless urgent steps are taken to restore trust and finalize the long-pending agreement, the current warning strike could escalate into a full-blown nationwide shutdown, once again grounding Nigeria’s public universities.
The University of Ibadan chapter has already mobilized its members to monitor compliance across departments, signaling that the union may sustain industrial action beyond the initial two weeks if no tangible progress is achieved.
