The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Thursday faulted the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, over his claim that the Federal Government never signed any binding agreement with the union.
Alausa, while addressing journalists in Abuja, insisted that the documents often cited by ASUU were merely negotiation drafts and not formal agreements. He stressed that the administration of President Bola Tinubu was committed to addressing the long-standing concerns of university lecturers but would only enter into what he described as “clean, actionable, and constitutional agreements.”
Earlier this year, the Tinubu administration released N50 billion to settle earned academic allowances for university lecturers and staff. However, ASUU continues to demand clear commitments on salary reviews, improved working conditions, better funding for universities, institutional autonomy, and an overhaul of the laws governing the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
According to Alausa, “The 2021 agreement was not executed by the government. ASUU might have an impression that they had an agreement, but the truth is there was no signed document with government. What we are doing now is to ensure any agreement we reach is implementable and sustainable.”
He explained that the government had reviewed ASUU’s latest proposals and was preparing a counter-proposal to be submitted to the Yayale Ahmed-led negotiation committee. A high-level technical team, chaired by the Permanent Secretary of Education and comprising senior officials from the Ministries of Justice, Labour, and Finance, has been tasked with producing a final draft.
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Alausa added that President Tinubu had instructed all stakeholders to ensure the new agreement process followed constitutional provisions to avoid the failures of previous negotiations.
However, ASUU President, Prof. Chris Piwuna, faulted the minister’s claims, describing them as evidence of poor record-keeping by the government.
“The government is very poor at keeping records. Sometimes, you wonder if there is a proper handover from one officer to another,” Piwuna told 9am News.
ASUU maintained that several signed documents exist, and past government officials had always acknowledged them, even if implementation had been inconsistent. The union warned that attempts to deny past agreements could further strain industrial harmony in the education sector.
The renewed debate over the existence of signed agreements adds another layer to the long history of disputes between ASUU and the federal government. For decades, unresolved issues of funding, autonomy, and remuneration have triggered strikes that disrupted Nigeria’s university calendar and left millions of students stranded.
Observers note that the Tinubu administration’s promise of a “once and for all” solution will be tested in the coming months, especially as ASUU continues to push for concrete timelines and commitments.
9am News report indicates that both sides appear open to dialogue, but the success of negotiations may depend on whether the government can back its promises with action rather than rhetoric.
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