The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) have commenced a nationwide strike due to perceived unfair treatment and discrepancies in the payment of withheld salaries by the Federal Government.
“Definitely, it (the strike) has already started,” SSANU President, Mohammed Ibrahim, declared on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme on Monday.
“As at today (Monday), all our workers in registry, bursary, works and maintenance, security, students’ affairs have withdrawn their services and nothing moves within the administration of any public university in Nigeria and that will be the case for the next seven days until and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.”
He expressed disappointment that no government representative has officially engaged with the non-academic unions, and while some informal contacts have been made, their promises are not reliable.
Ibrahim sensed some “saboteurs in his government” and wondered why President Bola Tinubu would give an instruction that members of varsity unions be paid 2022 arrears and some government officials won’t fully comply.
The SSANU President said the Labour Minister Nkiruka Onyejeocha has not reached out to the aggrieved unions despite that a seven-day notice was issued last Monday, a development he said was a departure to the responsiveness of the ex-Labour Minister Chris Ngige.
Ibrahim said should the government fail to heed the demands of the unions after the seven-day warning strike which commenced today, SSANU and NASU would go back to their toolbox and decide the next line of action.
