The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has warned of a fresh wave of industrial action in state-owned universities, accusing several state governments of failing to implement the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU agreement on lecturers’ salaries and welfare.
The union specifically raised concerns over Lagos, Gombe and Plateau states, warning that continued delays in implementing the agreement could lead to strikes that would disrupt academic activities at Lagos State University (LASU), Lagos State University of Education (LASUED), Lagos State University of Science and Technology (LASUSTECH), Gombe State University and Plateau State University.
Speaking at separate press conferences in Ikorodu, Lagos, and Gombe on Thursday, ASUU leaders lamented that six months after the agreement took effect on January 1, 2026, several state governments had yet to implement its provisions despite participating in the negotiations that culminated in the agreement signed on December 23, 2025.
The 2025 agreement, which replaced the 2009 Federal Government-ASUU pact, provides for a 40 per cent salary increase for lecturers and introduces the Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance to support research, publications and other academic activities.
ASUU warned that unless urgent action is taken, more state-owned universities could join institutions already affected by industrial disputes arising from the non-implementation of the agreement.
Addressing journalists at LASUSTECH in Ikorodu, the ASUU Lagos Zonal Coordinator, Dr. Adesola Nassir, urged Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to urgently implement the agreement to avert what he described as a “brewing unrest” across the state’s three universities.
Nassir said six months of engagement with representatives of the Lagos State Government had yielded no meaningful outcome, leaving lecturers feeling neglected and uncertain about the government’s commitment to their welfare.
“The non-implementation of the agreement being experienced by our members has left academic staff in the Lagos State-owned universities feeling neglected, undervalued and increasingly uncertain about the government’s commitment to their welfare,” he said.
He recalled that ASUU spent eight years renegotiating the 2009 agreement before the new deal was signed, describing the Lagos State Government’s response as disappointing.
According to him, the prolonged delay is already affecting staff morale and could undermine teaching quality, institutional stability and the academic calendar in LASU, LASUSTECH and LASUED.
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Nassir stressed that ASUU remained committed to dialogue but would not allow any government to undermine efforts aimed at improving university education and staff welfare.
He disclosed that the union had formally written to all state governments operating universities through their vice-chancellors, while the National Universities Commission (NUC) had also communicated with affected institutions.
The ASUU leader warned that the Lagos Zone would fully support any decision taken by its branches in LASU, LASUSTECH and LASUED to press for the implementation of the agreement.
He also urged Governor Sanwo-Olu to resolve outstanding disputes involving ASUU members, including unresolved staff entitlements at LASUED and the dismissal of some ASUU officials at LASU.
Similarly, the Bauchi Zone of ASUU accused the governments of Gombe and Plateau states of failing to implement the agreement, warning that the development could trigger industrial unrest in the affected institutions.
Speaking at Gombe State University, the ASUU Bauchi Zonal Coordinator, Timothy-Aku Namo, said the refusal of both governments to implement the agreement had worsened the welfare of lecturers and heightened frustration among academic staff.
Namo disclosed that a forensic audit conducted by the union’s National Executive Council on June 21, 2026, showed that only Sa’adu Zungur University in Bauchi State and Ekiti State University had fully implemented the agreement among the state-owned universities reviewed.
He appealed to the governors of Gombe and Plateau states, as visitors to their respective universities, to intervene urgently to prevent another round of industrial action.
ASUU maintained that failure by state governments to honour the agreement could plunge more universities into avoidable crises, urging all stakeholders to act swiftly in the interest of students and the nation’s higher education system.
