ASUU Urges FG to End Victimization of University Staff, Fulfill Agreements

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has called on the Federal Government to address the ongoing victimization of its members in public universities across the country.

The union urged the government to honor its commitments as outlined in previous agreements, particularly those made to improve the state of public universities.

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday at the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) Press Centre in Sokoto, ASUU’s Zonal Chairman, Prof. Abubakar Yabo, expressed concern that the memorandum of action signed with the Federal Government, which led to the suspension of the 2022 ASUU strike, remains largely unfulfilled. The agreement was part of the 2009 Nimi Briggs Accord.

Key issues highlighted by Yabo include the government’s failure to release three and a half months of withheld salaries from the 2022 strike, the unpaid wages of staff on sabbatical, part-time, and adjunct appointments affected by the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), and the non-payment of third-party deductions such as check-off dues and cooperative contributions.

“Other agreements include funding for the revitalization of public universities as captured in the 2023 Federal Government Budget, which also remains unaddressed,” Yabo said.

ASUU expressed frustration over what it described as “victimization” by university administrators, claiming that some state university visitors, vice-chancellors, and governing councils have resorted to targeting union members rather than addressing the agreed-upon demands.

“The union notes with disdain that while the government and university administrators are supposed to uphold the truth and protect the sanctity of the public university system, they now serve as agents of destruction for the very system they are meant to protect,” the statement added.

ASUU also raised concerns about the deteriorating conditions in Nigerian universities, citing the impact of current economic policies, which have made teaching and learning environments increasingly difficult.

“The current economic hardships, caused by unpopular government policies, have made the teaching and learning environment unbearable,” Yabo said, urging the government to respect academic freedom and improve conditions for educators.

The union condemned what it called the “tyrannical behavior” of some overzealous vice-chancellors, who have allegedly abused their authority by victimizing ASUU members.

ASUU called on the government to stop its “anti-intellectual” posture and treat public universities with dignity, demanding that it fulfill the terms of the agreements reached with the union.

“The survival of this nation is umbilically tied to the survival of public universities. Therefore, let them breathe, Mr. President,” Yabo concluded.

The ASUU Sokoto zone comprises several institutions, including Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto, Umaru Musa Yar’adua University Katsina, Sokoto State University, Federal University Dutsin-ma, Federal University Birnin Kebbi, and others.
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