By Peace Udugba — The Daily Torch Media
The President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Christopher Piwuna, has called on the Federal and state governments to fulfil their respective commitments to end the lingering crisis in Nigeria’s public university system.
Piwuna made the call on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, while speaking on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State.
His comments came days after ASUU warned that it could reactivate its suspended nationwide strike over the incomplete implementation of the December 2025 agreement, outstanding salary arrears and other welfare concerns affecting university lecturers.
Piwuna said the December 2025 agreement was expected to usher in a new phase for the university system, with attention shifting from recurring industrial disputes to stability, academic development and issues affecting the quality of education.
“It’s really painful to have conversation on issues like this. Our expectation, when we signed an agreement in December 2025, was that we are going at this time to talk about progress that we have made, the stability in the system and concern ourselves with issues that affect Nigerians,” he said.
According to the ASUU president, implementation of the agreement has been inconsistent, with some commitments by both federal and state authorities still outstanding.
He said the agreement covered funding for public universities, improved salaries and research support, among other provisions.
“The agreement, when we signed it, had provision for funding for public universities. It had provisions for improved salary, and it had provision for research council, amongst others,” Piwuna said.
State, Federal Governments Share Responsibility
Piwuna explained that the situation was complicated by the shared responsibility for the administration and funding of public universities between the Federal Government and state governments.
He said the implementation of the agreement had produced different outcomes across state-owned and federal universities, with some state governments implementing parts of the agreement while others had yet to do so.
Piwuna specifically cited Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, as an example of a governor who, according to him, had embraced implementation of the agreement.
“Only Governor Alex Oti of the South Eastern part has implemented it,” he said.
The ASUU president also said the Federal Government had outstanding obligations under the agreement.
He disclosed that the union had engaged the Minister of Education and Senator Larry Tejuosho, whom he identified as chairman of the committee monitoring implementation of the Federal Government agreement.
“We have engaged them; the Minister of Education at federal level, we engaged Senator Larry Tejuosho, the chairman of the implementation committee monitoring of the Federal Government agreement. We have reminded them to do the needful,” Piwuna said.
Salary Arrears Fuel Tension
Piwuna also linked the renewed tension in the university system to outstanding salary payments affecting lecturers.
ASUU has previously raised concerns over three-and-a-half months of salaries which it says remain unpaid from the seven-and-a-half months withheld during the previous administration.
The union also identified unremitted deductions and incomplete implementation of the December 2025 agreement among the issues behind its latest strike warning.
Piwuna said the situation had been further complicated by differences in salary implementation across universities.
“As we stand now, funding is not properly being done according to what was agreed to. Individual universities have to embark on strike before salaries are being paid. Some universities are cut off from the new salary structure,” he said.
He urged both federal and state authorities to honour agreements reached with the union, warning that continued failure to resolve the outstanding issues could further increase tension within the university system.
ASUU Backs Dialogue, Increased Education Funding
Despite the unresolved issues, Piwuna said ASUU remained committed to dialogue with the government.
He stressed, however, that agreements reached after negotiations must be followed by concrete implementation.
The ASUU president also called for increased investment in education, saying adequate funding was necessary to strengthen research, improve teaching and develop Nigerian universities.
He said the union had proposed increased government spending on education, adding that implementation could be done gradually.
“So while negotiating with the government, we told the government to reduce the budget to 15 per cent and they agreed. Although it may be difficult, but it can be done incrementally,” he said.
Piwuna urged the Federal and state governments to treat education as a critical instrument of national development and prioritise funding for universities under their respective control.
