The Academic Staff Union of Universities, Kaduna State University chapter, has issued a two-week ultimatum to the university authorities and other relevant stakeholders to implement the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU Agreement, warning that failure to act could lead to a total, comprehensive and indefinite strike.
The ASUU-KASU Chairman, Abubakar Abdullahi, disclosed this on Monday during a press conference at the union’s secretariat at Kaduna State University, Kaduna.
According to Abdullahi, more than 200 professors and other academic staff have left the university due to poor conditions of service and the failure to implement the agreement.
He said the 2025 FGN-ASUU Agreement, which provides for improved conditions of service for academic staff in Nigerian universities, took effect in January 2026 but had yet to be implemented at KASU.
The union chairman said ASUU had written several letters to the university management, Governing Council and the Visitor to the university, as well as the Kaduna State Governor, urging them to domesticate and implement the agreement.
He added that the union had also engaged stakeholders within and outside the state in an effort to resolve the matter and maintain industrial harmony at the institution.
Abdullahi, however, said eight months after the agreement was signed, KASU was yet to commence implementation, while several federal and state universities had either implemented it or announced timelines for its implementation, including the payment of accrued arrears.
He said the delay had made academic staff at KASU among the least-paid university workers in the country, despite the institution’s previous reputation for prioritising staff welfare.
The ASUU chairman warned that continued delay would lead to the accumulation of salary arrears dating back to January 2026.
He also attributed the departure of experienced academic staff, including professors and other lecturers, to the poor conditions of service, warning that losing such personnel could take years for the university to recover from.
According to him, ASUU-KASU’s Congress, at a meeting held on August 12, 2026, resolved to declare an industrial dispute and embark on a total, comprehensive and indefinite strike in line with the resolution of the union’s National Executive Council meeting held at the University of Abuja on August 8 and 9.
Abdullahi said the two-week ultimatum was issued in accordance with established procedures governing industrial disputes, giving the authorities time to take concrete steps towards implementing and domesticating the 2025 agreement.
The union also listed other outstanding issues affecting its members, including university autonomy, excessive workload, promotion arrears, death benefits, group life insurance coverage, the 25 and 35 per cent wage awards and pension remittances.
ASUU-KASU urged the university management and other relevant authorities to treat the issues with urgency and provide satisfactory responses to prevent industrial action.
The union also appealed to parents, stakeholders and well-meaning Nigerians to intervene in the matter to help avert the looming strike.
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