News

40% Pay Rise: Crisis Looms In Varsities Over Exclusion Of Workers

Published

2 years ago

April 24, 2023

There are indications that unions in the university may rise up against the Federal Government over the alleged exclusion of their members in the 40 per cent pay rise for peculiar allowance and arrears.

The Federal Government has recently commenced payment of the approved 40 percent increase for civil servants in the federal ministries, agencies and departments under the Consolidated Public Salary Structure.

But workers in the university sector have kicked against their exclusion, describing the action of the government as a recipe for crisis.

But the Federal Government has said that there is no cause for alarm as the university workers are captured in the pay rise.

The government also said that it was waiting for the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU to conclude its negotiation on the Collective Bargaining Agreement, CBA, on the condition of service with its employer, the Ministry of Education so that it would be transmitted to the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission.

Speaking to Vanguard on Monday, the President of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU, Comrade Mohammed Ibrahim, said that the idea of denying university workers the salary increment is an invitation to crisis in the university sector..

Comrade Ibrahim accused the government of abandoning the agreement it entered into with the university unions, alleging that the N50 billion Earned Allowances the government promised to include in the 2023 budget has not seen the light of the day as workers were yet to receive any payment on that.

According to him, “This idea of denying university workers the salary increment is only a recipe for crisis in the education sector. Because government had promised two years ago that they were going to review the salaries putting in the re-negotiation committee and re-negotiations never got concluded.

“We have even lost the chairman of the re-negotiation committee. In the last one year we have not heard anything from the government and it is like everything has been halted.

“So if they were people who know what they want and I truly they were interested in developing the manpower of this country and having interest in the education sector, they should have considered making reality those promises they have made.

“There Is this N50 billion Earned Allowances which they said that have put in the 2023 budget, it has not seem the light of the day. There is a proposal for salary increment which they made and which has not also seen the light of the day.

“And now from nowhere we just heard that 40 per cent perculiar allowance has been given to the core civil servants, we are not averse to making lives of civil servants better by giving them any allowance but that the services being offered by the university workers. There won’t be any good civil servant, there won’t be any productive civil servants if the universities are not productive, if the university staff are not properly renumerated because you will be churning out half baked graduates and nobody will have any interest in employing any Nigerian graduate again.

“So the idea of excluding university workers from this salary enhancement is a recipe for disaster in the education sector. This is my position as SSANU President.

“And I want to call in the government to immediately without much delay release the N50 billion Earned Allowances and also implement the salary increment which we have been talking with them in the last two years.

“Meanwhile our organs will meet and take the necessary actions. I mean we will take the decisions that will be comnunicated to the public. But we are not happy with the government, we are not happy at all with the way they are handling the affairs of the university workers..”

However, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige said that the university workers were not excluded in the pay rise, explaining that the delay in paying them was due to the inability of ASUU to conclude negotiations with its employer.

He said, “Because they (ASUU) have not concluded their Collective Bargaining with their employers, the ministry of Education. If you remember there was the Prof. (Nimi) Briggs Comnittee and that Briggs Committee reached conclusion with NAAT, SSANU and NASU.

“But there were certain observations made on the conclusion they reached with because ASUU never came for them to reach any conclusion with them. So, there were certain observations that were pointed out to education. So they will now go back to education and revalidate a new CBA and transmit immediately to salaries, income and wages. And salaries, income and wages will work on it urgently as a new CBA for condition of service and transmit to the presidential committee on salaries. We expect all this will be done within the next fortnight.”

Asked whether the commencement date to pay the 40 per cent pay rise for University workers will also be January, he responded in the affirmative.

He said, “It will commence from January because it has been captured in the 2023 budget with the present national assembly. The same will go with ASUU whenever they come back to education and accept whatever education has offered them, it will also go to salaries, income and wages commission for transmission to the presidential committee on salaries, that’s the route.

“So these other people that got their 40 per cent have been negotiating since two years or more. The Association of Senior Civil Servants, the National Civil Service Union and other related joint negotiating councils of those people, they have been negotiating. So, the 40 per cent they got took into account that they have not been having any increases with allowances before. So, it was all that the national salaries, income and wages calculated and aggregated it to 40 per cent as a peculiar allowance.

“Mark you, it is not only on salaries, it also includes their allowances. It is the entire wage structure, component of their wage, monthly wage, and annual wage that have been computed into that. Same is being done for NASU, SSANU and others.

“This time around we except CONUA and NAMDA to go into CBA for their own members”

On the complaint by SSANU that the N50 billion Earned Allowances, captured in the i2023 has not been released to them, he said: “This is what I am telling you. Even their condition of service review and everything have been captured in the 2023 budget. Not only them, the educational sector including ASUU and their allowances. These allowances are even being doubled

“There is no promise to SSANU separately, we are dealing with University unions comprehensively. It is combined. The money is more than N50 billion dedicated to the education sector. Everything has its own components, it’s more than N50 billion. For the educational sector including the Polytechnics and everybody, I think it is up to N350 billion captured in 2023 budget.”

Asked why the the money has not been released yet, Senator Ngige said, “You do one line one step. This is a fall-out of an industrial action, so we are tidying it up now starting with their condition of service of which their wage is first thing first. So it is when you do your wages that you now do extra allowances.”

News

JAMB Sets Cut-off Mark For University Admissions

Published

3 hours ago

July 8, 2025

Editor

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has fixed 150 as the minimum cut-off mark for admission into Nigerian universities for the 2025/2026 academic session.

The decision was reached on Tuesday during the 2025 Policy Meeting on Admissions, held at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja, with stakeholders from various tertiary institutions in attendance.

According to JAMB, 140 was approved as the minimum score for colleges of nursing sciences, while polytechnics, colleges of education, and colleges of agriculture will admit candidates with a minimum score of 100.

“The minimum admissible scores for admissions for the next academic session have been fixed at 150 for universities, 100 for polytechnics, 100 for colleges of education, and 140 for colleges of nursing sciences by the stakeholders (Heads of Tertiary Institutions),” JAMB announced via its official X account.

News

Why ADC Will Collapse In Six Months — Bwala

Published

4 hours ago

July 8, 2025

Editor

Daniel Bwala, Special Adviser on Policy Communication to President Bola Tinubu, says the opposition coalition formed under the African Democratic Congress (ADC) will collapse within six months due to a lack of ideology and vision.

Speaking on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, Bwala said the coalition comprises politicians without a unified agenda, describing them as “internally displaced politicians” who have failed to present credible alternatives to Nigerians.

“What I still find intriguing is that this coalition of internally displaced politicians has not been able to summon the courage to come up with alternative facts, alternative policies, or alternative programmes,” Bwala said.

He added that the coalition has relied solely on press statements and criticism without offering a roadmap to challenge the ruling party.

Bwala said, “Throughout the interview you had with Peter Obi, what I observed is that he has not been able to counter or disagree in the real sense of the word with the policies.

“They have not brought a single alternative policy to the table. The truth is, they lack vision and have not shown Nigerians they truly care.”

Bwala predicted that internal power struggles, particularly over who becomes the presidential flagbearer, would tear the group apart and cause ADC’s collapse before it gets off the ground.

“All this fantasy of coalition, we all know that once there is a phenomenon like that, we are going to have a good two to three weeks of romanticising: ‘we have ideas, we can do this.

“One of them Datti (Baba-Ahmed) has already sensed the danger ahead and said the problem of this coalition will be who becomes the president. Because right now I’m quoting him ‘everybody wants to be the president,’” he said.

“After one month, when they sit down, I am telling you on my honour, in the next six months, that coalition will not even be a conversation. They will scatter.”

He also claimed that Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, has effectively stepped down for Atiku Abubakar, former Vice-President and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

According to Bwala, Obi is now struggling to secure the vice-presidential ticket and may compete for the slot with Rotimi Amaechi, former minister of transportation.

He added that there are talks of Obi being appointed Director-General of the coalition’s campaign, with promises that Atiku would serve a single term to pave the way for Obi to contest in the future.

However, Obi recently declared his intention to run for president again in 2027, dismissing reports that he had agreed to serve under Atiku.

“Peter Obi is now a non-issue. He’s a non-starter. Already, he has conceded his presidential ambition to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

“Now he has become second fiddle, but he needs to fight for the vice-presidential ticket with Rotimi Amaechi.

“And from what we are hearing, they have convinced him that he will be director-general of the campaign to lead the movement and that when they win the election, Atiku will do one term, and then Peter Obi will return to become president,” he stated.

Recall that earlier, several opposition figures including Obi, Atiku, Amaechi, former Senate President David Mark, and ex-Minister Rauf Aregbesola adopted the ADC as a platform to challenge President Tinubu in the 2027 elections.

But Bwala insisted the alliance is unstable and poses no threat to the presidency.

News

ASUU Directs Members To Begin Nationwide Strike Education

Published

5 hours ago

July 8, 2025

Editor

…UNIJOS, UniAbuja join strike

The leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has confirmed that a directive has been issued for all branches of the union nationwide to withdraw their services over the delay in the payment of June 2025 salaries to its members, citing the enforcement of “No Pay, No Work” resolution.

ASUU branches in two federal universities, the University of Jos and the University of Abuja, have already commenced strike action in compliance with the directive.

President of ASUU, Prof. Chris Piwuna, who confirmed the development to Tribune Online on Monday in Abuja, said what the institutions are doing is simply enforcing a National Executive Council (NEC) resolution of the union that any month in which salaries are delayed beyond three days, members should withdraw their services until the salaries are paid.

Piwuna lamented the lackadaisical attitude of government officials toward the issue of lecturers’ salaries, which he described as a paltry amount.

He explained that since the migration of university workers from the Integrated Personnel Payroll and Information System (IPPIS) to the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), union members have experienced significant hardship due to salary delays.

He disclosed that the leadership of the union has engaged relevant government officials, including the Minister of Education and the Accountant General of the Federation, without any positive result. Hence, the ASUU NEC resolved to enforce the “No Pay, No Work” policy.

He said: “What they are doing is just enforcing a NEC resolution. We have agreed at NEC that our members are going through a lot since our migration out of the Integrated Personnel Payroll and Information System. Certainly, our salaries are delayed for a week and sometimes 10 days before our members receive the paltry amount we get to help us carry out our duties well.

“Therefore, we agreed that if there is no pay, there will be no work,” Piwuna said.

On whether other universities are joining the strike action, the ASUU President said all institutions that have not been paid are expected to withdraw their services, insisting that this was the resolution at NEC and the only way to address the challenge, which he noted is being deliberately caused by some government officials, especially at the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation.

He said any institution that has not been paid will join the action because “we are tired of talking about this.”

“We have spoken to the relevant authorities—the minister is aware, the Office of the Accountant General is aware. All those concerned are aware that this thing has been happening. We’ve had meetings with them to express our dissatisfaction with the way our salaries are being paid, and they have not taken any action. We want to work, but we cannot because they have not allowed us to work,” he stated.

Piwuna maintained that the government has no genuine reason for the delay in salary payments because the platform used for payments has no issues.

According to him, when the money finally gets to the universities, nobody has complained of being underpaid or not receiving their salary.

“So, the platform through which the payment is effected has not been the problem. It’s just a deliberate effort by the Office of the Accountant General to delay the release of the funds. The platform is working well, but those who make it work are not willing to make it work. We think it’s a deliberate act; that is the point we are making,” the ASUU President added.

He, however, noted that the issue of salary delays is the immediate challenge facing union members and warned that the outstanding N10 billion Earned Academic Allowance (EAA) should be released promptly by the government to avoid another round of struggle.

He noted that the Federal Government was supposed to pay lecturers N50 billion in outstanding EAA but only released N40 billion, leaving a balance of N10 billion.

“On the EAA you talked about, the total amount was N50 billion, and what they gave to us is N40 billion. N10 billion is still outstanding. We hope that this is paid quickly so that we do not have to fight over it,” the ASUU President said.

Chairman of the University of Jos branch of ASUU, Jurbe Molwus, had announced the withdrawal of services by members of the union at the university, citing the delay in the payment of their June 2025 salaries.

Molwus said this followed the National Executive Council resolution directing branches to take action when salaries are not paid by the third day of a new month, and the congress affirming the position. He said union members have abstained from lectures and statutory meetings.

The chairman stated further that any time salaries are not paid by the third day of the month, there would be a continuous withdrawal of services by the lecturers.

He also said the strike monitoring team of the branch had been activated to ensure compliance.

Members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Abuja branch, have also withdrawn their services on Monday as a result of the delay in the payment of their June 2025 salaries, Nigerian Tribune has gathered.

Chairman of the UniAbuja branch of ASUU, Dr. Sylvanus Ugoh, did not return calls to confirm the strike action by his members.

The spokesperson of the University of Abuja, Dr. Habib Yakoob, when contacted, however said he was not in a position to speak on the issue and advised that the question be directed to the branch chairman of ASUU.