by Rosemary Etim Bassey
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has declared a total and comprehensive two-week warning strike across all public universities in Nigeria.
National President of the Union, Prof. Chris Piwuna, announced this on Sunday during a press conference at the University of Abuja, citing the Federal Government’s failure to address long-standing issues affecting the nation’s universities.
According to him, the 14-day ultimatum earlier issued on September 28, 2025, had expired without any concrete response from the government. He said all ASUU branches had been directed to withdraw their services from midnight, Monday, October 13, 2025, in line with the resolution of the union’s National Executive Council (NEC).
“The strike will be total and comprehensive,” Piwuna said, explaining that it was necessary to draw attention to the poor funding of universities and the welfare challenges facing academic staff.
ASUU noted that it had made several efforts to engage the government, including peaceful rallies across campuses in August, but nothing was done to resolve the lingering issues.
“Both federal and state governments continue to pay little or no attention to the education sector in general,” the union stated.
Reacting to the development, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, urged ASUU to reconsider its decision, assuring that the government was already taking steps to meet some of the union’s demands.
He said the Mahmud Yayale Ahmed Negotiation Committee had been reconstituted to fast-track talks with all university unions, following President Bola Tinubu’s directive to avoid further disruptions in the academic calendar.
Despite the assurance, ASUU said it would proceed with the strike until meaningful progress is made.
