The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, Federal University Wukari, FUW, branch, on Wednesday took to the streets in protest.
The staff who came out in their numbers, accused the Federal Government of neglect and failure to honour agreements previously reached with the union.
Led by Professor Asabe Mercy, Chairperson of the FUW branch, the protest saw lecturers voicing their frustration over alleged stalled negotiations, unpaid entitlements, and what they described as worsening conditions in the Nigerian university system.
A major point of contention, according to them, was the recently introduced Tertiary Institution Staff Support Fund, a loan scheme aimed at providing financial relief to academic staff.
The union rejected the initiative, insisting that lecturers need fair remuneration and better welfare — not loans.
“Our take-home cannot take us home. And to add salt to injury, they want to give us loans. We are rejecting that outrightly. Give us our salaries. Agreement is agreement. Enough is enough,” Mercy declared.
ASUU FUW further warned that Nigerians should prepare for a possible shutdown of universities if the government continues to ignore their demands.
“They reach agreements but fail to implement them. We are asking the public to hold the government responsible should we shut down the university system, because the public always accuses ASUU. We want Nigerians to know it is not ASUU but the government,” Mercy added.
Among the union’s key demands, as gather by our reporter, are the full payment of Earned Academic Allowances (EAA), revitalization funds for universities, an end to salary stagnation, and improved general welfare for academic staff.
The union lamented that the N50 billion recently released by the government accounts for less than 10 percent of what is actually owed.
Also speaking at the protest, former ASUU FUW Chairman, Professor Kidzu Oweh, described the current salary structure for lecturers as “humiliating,” questioning the logic behind the Federal Government’s loan scheme.
ASUU stages protest in Taraba, rejects FG’s staff loan scheme
