The federal government has reiterated its No Work, No Pay policy on the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), which embarked on a two-week warning strike on Monday.
The government stated that it would be guided by this law should academic activities be disrupted in the nation’s universities.
In a statement signed by the Director of Press and Public Relations at the Federal Ministry of Education, Mrs Folasade Boriowo, the government reaffirmed that while it continues to demonstrate goodwill and flexibility, it will not abdicate its responsibility to uphold fairness and accountability in the use of public resources.
The statement, however, reassured Nigerian students, parents, and the general public that the federal government remains firmly committed to maintaining industrial harmony within the tertiary education system.
It added that the Minister of Education has appealed to all academic unions to embrace partnership and dialogue, rather than confrontation, in the collective interest of the nation’s higher education sector.
ASUU, on Sunday, announced a total and comprehensive two-week warning strike in public universities across Nigeria.
Addressing a press conference yesterday at the University of Abuja, the group’s National President, Professor Chris Piwuna, stated that there had been no meaningful progress to prevent the union from moving forward with its planned industrial action.
He explained that the 14-day notice, issued on September 28, 2025, had lapsed without any substantial response from the relevant authorities.
He stated that all ASUU branches across the country have been directed to commence a full withdrawal of their services beginning at midnight on Monday, October 13, 2025.
According to Professor Piwuna, the strike would be both total and comprehensive, in line with the resolution reached at the union’s most recent National Executive Council (NEC) meeting.
Last Wednesday, the federal government appealed to ASUU to shelve its planned strike, assuring that it is committed to addressing all outstanding demands raised by the union.
Speaking then, the Minister of Education, Mr Tunji Alausa, said the Bola Tinubu-led government is already looking into the demands of the Union and progress is already being made in the ongoing negotiations between both parties.
The Minister explained that the Mahmud Yayale Ahmed-led Federal Government Tertiary Institutions Expanded Negotiation Committee had been reconstituted and inaugurated to fast-track talks with both academic and non-academic unions in universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
He added that President Tinubu had given clear directives that all efforts must be made to avoid another disruption in the nation’s tertiary institutions.