Lecturers in the Benin Zone of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) have expressed their frustration over the unmet demands and unpaid salaries, threatening to embark on industrial action if their grievances are not addressed.
According to the union’s coordinator, Prof. Monday Igbafen, university lecturers have not had their salaries reviewed in 15 years, and the last agreement signed in 2022 remains a draft. The government has failed to meet the union’s demands, which include the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement, funding for university revitalization, and the payment of outstanding salaries and allowances.
Igbafen lamented that while government is busy reviewing the salaries of other workers, university lecturers are being left behind. He also criticized some state governments for running universities at variance with laid-down rules. The union leader warned that the continued under-valuation of lecturers’ salaries is a recipe for industrial disharmony and resistance.
The ASUU Benin Zone coordinator emphasized that the union has been pushed to the wall and will not hesitate to take further action if their demands are not met. The union’s demands include the illegal dissolution of governing councils, withheld salaries, unpaid sabbatical and adjunct staff salaries, non-release of third-party deductions, non-payment of earned academic allowances, proliferation of public universities, and refusal to adopt UTAS instead of IPPIS.
Igbafen expressed disappointment that the government is ignoring the union’s concerns and urging them to proceed on strike. The union is giving the government an ultimatum to address its grievances or face further action.
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