ASUU Joins NLC in Nationwide Strike over Fuel Subsidy Removal

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) joins the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in a nationwide strike action today, September 5, 2023.

The strike’s intent is to protest the federal government’s decision to eliminate fuel subsidies, devalue the naira, and demolish federal workers’ residences in Abuja.

The president of ASUU, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, said the union was in solidarity with the NLC and its affiliates, and that its members would withdraw their services from all public universities in the country.

He said the government had failed to address the issues affecting the education sector, such as inadequate funding, poor infrastructure, and non-implementation of previous agreements.

The NLC had earlier issued a two-day warning strike notice to the government, demanding a reversal of the policies that it said were anti-people and anti-development.

NLC also accused the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, of threatening to demolish houses owned by federal workers in the nation’s capital.

The federal government, however, has described the strike as illegal and unpatriotic, and urged the NLC to suspend it and engage in dialogue.

The government said it had taken steps to cushion the effects of the subsidy removal and currency devaluation on the masses, such as providing palliatives, increasing the minimum wage, and creating jobs.