The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has pushed back against the Federal Government’s threat to enforce a “no work, no pay” policy over its two-week warning strike, declaring a counter stance — “no pay, no work.”
The lecturers’ union accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of insincerity and neglect of the education sector despite several rounds of negotiations and unfulfilled promises.
In an interview with Media, ASUU’s Zonal Coordinator for Akure, Dr. Adeola Egbetokun, faulted Minister of State for Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, for threatening the union with sanctions, saying members were ready for any showdown.
“Yes, it’s a familiar route, and our members are ready. Dr. Alausa should also know there’s something called ‘no pay, no work.’ His insincerity and lack of commitment brought us to this point,” Egbetokun said.
He revealed that ASUU had exercised patience for over two years while the government failed to honour a draft agreement reached through collective bargaining with the Yayale Ahmed-led committee.
“We had a draft agreement that reflected major concessions from ASUU, yet the government became recalcitrant. Then, last Friday, they presented a strange document that completely abandoned previous understandings,” he added.
Egbetokun warned that if the Federal Government fails to address the union’s demands within the two-week strike window, ASUU would activate internal procedures for further action.
“The union leadership has a review mechanism after such expiration, and that will be applied,” he stated.
On Sunday, ASUU announced the commencement of a nationwide two-week warning strike beginning Monday, October 13, citing years of unmet agreements and chronic underfunding of Nigeria’s public universities.
Meanwhile, the Federal Ministry of Education accused ASUU of being uncooperative despite “ongoing negotiations and repeated calls for dialogue.” The ministry also reiterated its readiness to apply the “no work, no pay” rule, emphasizing that sustained dialogue remains the only way to resolve the protracted crisis in the education sector.
