Minister of State for Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, says the Federal Government has met all the demands of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), describing the union’s ongoing two-week warning strike as unnecessary.
Speaking on Channels Television, Alausa said the government had made significant progress in addressing every issue raised by ASUU before the strike began on October 13. He urged the union to call off the strike and return to the negotiation table.
“I do not see reasons why they have gone on this strike. I can tell you today that all demands of ASUU have been met,” the minister said.
He explained that the government had released ₦50 billion for earned academic allowances and resolved the issue of postgraduate supervision allowances, which are now being handled by individual universities.
According to him, ₦50 billion out of the ₦150 billion earmarked for the NEEDS Assessment fund in the 2025 budget has already been released, while the balance will be disbursed in tranches. He added that promotion arrears would be paid under the 2026 appropriation and that the 25/35 percent wage award would also be implemented next year once all public servants receive theirs.
Alausa noted that the government had given ASUU a counterproposal on October 10 regarding conditions of service and staff welfare, but the union embarked on strike before responding.
He attributed delays in negotiations to the temporary absence of the committee chairman, former House Speaker Ali Ahmad, who traveled for Hajj and later attended to family matters.
On the issue of unpaid salaries from ASUU’s eight-month strike in 2022, Alausa said only 50 percent had been approved for payment based on an earlier agreement facilitated by President Bola Tinubu when he was a presidential aspirant.
The minister also confirmed that problems with third-party deductions and union remittances had been resolved and would now be managed at the university level.
Alausa appealed to parents to remain calm, assuring them that the government was working to ensure stability in the university system.
“In the last two and a half years, there has been no strike, and this is due to our active and proactive engagement with the union,” he said.
