Members of SSANU and NASU prepare for a nationwide protest demanding resolution of unpaid salaries, arrears, and allowances.
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) have announced a nationwide one-day protest for Thursday, citing the Federal Government’s failure to address long-standing staff welfare concerns.
Operating under the Joint Action Committee (JAC), the unions have instructed all branches to hold joint emergency meetings on Wednesday to mobilize members for protest activities, including campus marches, placard displays, and press briefings.
The move follows a comprehensive review of government actions during a JAC meeting on October 6, after repeated ultimatums expired without resolution. The unions’ key grievances include the alleged inequitable disbursement of the N50 billion earned allowances, delays in renegotiating the 2009 FGN/NASU/SSANU agreements, non-payment of two months’ outstanding salaries, arrears of 25% and 35% salary increments, and the non-remittance of third-party deductions for May and June 2022.
JAC had previously issued a seven-day ultimatum to the government on September 15, later extended by 14 days, which lapsed on Monday, October 6.
In a circular titled “Commencement of Protest Actions”, dated October 6 and signed by NASU General Secretary Prince Peters Adeyemi and SSANU National President Comrade Mohammed Ibrahim, members were urged to fully participate. The memo read:
“Following the inauguration of the Joint Consultative Committee by the Honourable Minister of Education to look into the demands of JAC of NASU & SSANU, the committee met twice — on Friday, 19th September 2025, and Monday, 6th October 2025 — with little progress, as our demands remain unresolved despite the extension of the ultimatum. In light of this development, the National JAC hereby directs branch leadership in universities and inter-university centres nationwide to convene a joint congress on Wednesday, 8th October 2025, to mobilise for a massive and effective one-day protest on Thursday, 9th October 2025.“
SSANU President Mohammed Ibrahim criticized the government for insincerity, warning that prolonged inaction could escalate into an indefinite strike.
“Ours will not be the ‘mother of all strikes’; it will be the grandfather of all strikes,” Ibrahim said. “When SSANU or NASU strikes, you know what it means. We must take our destinies in our hands.”
He further highlighted the financial, economic, and psychological hardships faced by non-academic staff in universities.
Like their counterparts in the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), both SSANU and NASU have been in ongoing disputes with the Federal Government over staff welfare, funding, and working conditions.
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