By Barth Ndubuwah, Port-Harcourt

Just days before the expiration of the one-month window granted to the Federal Government to conclude the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has expressed grave concern that the exercise may not be completed within the stipulated timeframe.

The fear was articulated on Friday by the Port Harcourt Zone of ASUU during a press briefing held at the ASUU Secretariat, University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT).

Comrade Uzoma Chima, the Coordinator of the Port Harcourt Zone, stated that it is becoming worrisome that the renegotiation may not be concluded in the record time expected following the suspension of the last warning strike.

He lamented that three weeks have already passed, leaving only one week, with no significant progress achieved in the exercise, save for what he described as a paltry increase in members’ salaries, which ASUU has already rejected.

The Zonal Coordinator regretted that Nigerian lecturers are the worst-paid academic staff in Africa, despite the country witnessing increased revenue in recent years.

He faulted the Federal Government’s claim of paucity of funds, citing data from the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) to indicate the contrary.

“Contrary to the claim of paucity of funds and economic downturn, available evidence shows that there has been quantum leap in the revenue profile of both the Federal and State Governments. For example, in 2022, according to data from the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee, the states received a total of N3.92 trillion}, while the figure for 2024 was N5.81 trillion},” Dr. Chima revealed.

ASUU, therefore, attributed the government’s failure to honour the agreement to a lack of political will, rather than a shortage of funds.

Stressing that the surest way to protect the nation’s future is to invest in education, which remains the bedrock of any society, ASUU called on stakeholders to urgently intervene and prevail on the Federal Government.

“The Union is using this opportunity to call on traditional rulers, leaders, students, parents, the NLC, and civil society to continue to urge government to address the outstanding issues and conclude the renegotiation of the agreement without further delay,” Dr. Chima urged.

All federating branches of the Port Harcourt Zone of ASUU were reported to be present at the media parley.