Members of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) have commenced a nationwide strike today (Monday) over alleged unfair treatment and salary disparities by the Federal Government.
News About Nigeria reported that the unions had issued a warning last Monday, threatening to shut down hostels and power supply in universities across the country if their demands were not met by today, March 18, 2024.
Muhammed Ibrahim, the National President of SSANU, mentioned that members, including vice-chancellors, registrars, and bursars, have not received their 2022 arrears.
Speaking to The Punch on Sunday, Ibrahim confirmed that the unions were prepared for the nationwide strike.
Meanwhile, Prof. Tahir Mamman, the Minister for Education, stated that he was unaware of SSANU/NASU’s planned strike.
However, during a Channels Television programme, Ibrahim declared that the strike had commenced.
He stated, “Definitely, it (the strike) has already started. As of today (Monday), all our workers in registry, bursary, works and maintenance, security, and students’ affairs have withdrawn their services and nothing moves within the administration of any public university in Nigeria, and that will be the case for the next seven days until and unless the needful is done.”
Ibrahim said that no government representative had reached out to the non-academic unions officially.
He expressed disappointment that some government officials had not fully complied with President Bola Tinubu’s instruction to pay 2022 arrears.
Furthermore, he noted that the Minister of Labour, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, had not contacted the unions despite issuing a seven-day notice last Monday.
Ibrahim compared this lack of responsiveness to the actions of the former Labour Minister, Chris Ngige.
He warned that if the government failed to address the unions’ demands after the seven-day warning strike, they would consider further actions.
