Lukman Abdulmalik
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Bayero University Kano (BUK) branch, on Tuesday staged a peaceful protest, urging the Federal Government to honour its renegotiated agreements and pay outstanding salaries.
Speaking during the protest in Kano, ASUU-BUK Vice-Chairman, Comrade Yusuf Madugu, said the action followed the government’s failure to address longstanding issues despite years of negotiations.
He recalled that committees led by Prof. Munzali Jibrin, Prof. Nimi Briggs, and most recently Malam Yayale Ahmed concluded renegotiations of the 2009 agreement in December 2024, but the government has yet to implement the outcome.
Madugu said the union is demanding the signing and implementation of the renegotiated agreement, payment of three and a half months’ withheld salaries from the 2022 strike, improved welfare and allowances, proper university funding through revitalisation funds, and respect for university autonomy.
He lamented that of the ₦200 billion revitalisation fund approved during the Goodluck Jonathan administration to be disbursed in six tranches, only one tranche has been released. According to him, the funds are critical for laboratories, libraries, classrooms, and overall learning conditions.
Madugu warned that the Federal Government would be held responsible for any fallout if the demands remain unmet, adding that ASUU would decide its next steps after a national emergency congress.
Meanwhile, President of the BUK Students Union Government, Abdullahi Usman-Baba, appealed to the government to dialogue with ASUU, stressing that students bear the greatest burden whenever strikes occur.
“When strikes happen, our calendar is disrupted. We plead with the government to sit with ASUU and resolve these issues,” he said.
