The ongoing dispute between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has taken a new turn, following fresh claims by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa.
Speaking in Abuja, the minister explained that what many have described as the 2021 agreement between the government and ASUU was never formally signed. According to him, the document was only a draft proposal brought forward during negotiations and not an official, binding agreement.
Alausa stressed that the present administration under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is determined to resolve all lingering issues with university lecturers once and for all. He noted that previous negotiations were often handled without full legal backing, a mistake the government is now seeking to avoid.
Earlier this year, the federal government released N50 billion to clear earned academic allowances, but ASUU insists that this gesture is not enough. The union continues to demand concrete commitments on improved salaries, better working conditions, adequate funding for universities, institutional autonomy, and a review of regulatory laws affecting the higher education sector.
To this end, the Minister disclosed that a high-powered technical team has been inaugurated to thoroughly review ASUU’s demands and draft a counter-proposal that is both realistic and constitutional. The team, chaired by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, includes top officials from the Ministries of Justice and Labour, the Salary and Wages Commission, the National Universities Commission, TETFund, and the Budget Office.
According to Alausa, the government is determined to produce a clean, sustainable agreement that can be fully implemented. “This time, every content will be actionable and realistic. Once the technical committee completes its work, the proposal will be forwarded to the Yayale Ahmed Committee for formal engagement with ASUU,” he assured.
However, ASUU has rejected the minister’s position, insisting that the government is attempting to downplay previous commitments. The union’s president, Professor Chris Piwuna, faulted the government’s record-keeping system, stressing that such denials further fuel distrust.
“The government has a poor culture of keeping records. Many times, there seems to be no proper handover between officials. That is why you hear one administration disowning agreements made before it,” Piwuna said.
