The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Nsukka Zone, has warned that it will resist attempts by the Federal Government (FG) to weaken and impoverish the academic sector.
The union has also informed parents and students in universities within the zone to prepare for a possible strike if the government fails to meet their demands.
The Nsukka Zone includes Benue State University (BSU), Enugu State University of Technology (ESUT), Federal University of Agriculture Makurdi (FUAM), Federal University Lokoja (FUL), Federal University Wukari (FUW), Federal University of Health Sciences Otukpo (FUHSO), Kogi State University Anyigba (KSU), and University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN).
At a press conference held at Benue State University (now Moses Orshio Adasu University), the Zonal Coordinator, Prof. Christian Opata, said the union is focusing on the implementation of the Yayale Ahmed Committee Report.
He accused the FG of repeatedly failing to honour agreements reached with ASUU over the years, stressing that the union had avoided strikes for the past two years not because their demands were met, but to show Nigerians that ASUU is not always eager to strike.
Opata said: Nigerian academics are being impoverished, and this must stop, ASUU will continue fighting for better education and working conditions.If the government does not act, a major crisis in the education sector is coming.
He also criticized the government for wasting resources on several committees such as those led by Wale Babalakin, Munzali Jibril, Nimi Briggs, and now Yayale Ahmed but ignoring their recommendations.
According to him, the latest renegotiated agreement by the Yayale Ahmed Committee was submitted in February 2025, but the government has done nothing about it.
Opata warned that ASUU may no longer attend government meetings if past agreements continue to be ignored.
“We have been patient, but if the government keeps testing our resolve, we will have no choice but to return to strike. A stitch in time saves nine,” he said.
