By John Umeh
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has issued a fresh 14-day ultimatum to the Federal Government to meet its longstanding demands or face another round of nationwide strikes.
The ultimatum followed the union’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held on Sunday, September 28, at the University of Abuja. In a statement signed by its National President, Professor Chris Piwuna, ASUU accused the government of neglecting Nigeria’s public university system and failing to address critical issues affecting tertiary education.
“If at the end of the fourteen-day ultimatum the Federal Government fails to address these issues, the Union may have no option but to, first, embark on a two-week warning strike and thereafter, a total and indefinite strike,” the statement read.
The union’s demands include the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement, the release of revitalisation funds for public universities, settlement of outstanding salary arrears, and the creation of a sustainable framework for funding tertiary education.
Although the Federal Government had previously set up a committee chaired by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Abel Enitan, to review ASUU’s proposals, the union said there has been no meaningful feedback weeks after.
With the countdown now underway, Nigerians may once again be bracing for a possible shutdown of public universities if the government fails to act within the two-week window.
