Presidential Aide Claims ASUU Strikes Have Plunged Under Tinubu

A Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, has said industrial action by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has significantly reduced under the Renewed Hope administration, noting that the union has embarked on only one strike action since 2023.

Olusegun attributed the decline to what he described as deliberate and sustained government interventions aimed at addressing longstanding issues in the education sector.

In a statement shared on his official X handle on Tuesday, he said the sole strike recorded under the current administration was a nine-day warning action, marking a sharp contrast to what he described as years of frequent and prolonged industrial actions under previous governments.

“Since the inception of the Renewed Hope administration about three years ago, ASUU has gone on strike only once — a warning strike that lasted nine days.

“This represents a clear departure from the era of annual strikes. It did not occur by accident but resulted from intentional efforts by the government over the past three years,” he said.

While there have been no prolonged nationwide strikes since President Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, ASUU has at various times issued ultimatums and carried out brief warning actions over issues such as university funding and unpaid allowances.

Olusegun further stated that the Federal Government has made significant progress in resolving long-standing disputes with the union, particularly through the renegotiation of the 2009 agreements.

“With the recent breakthrough announced by the Federal Government following the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement, we may be witnessing the beginning of the end of recurring ASUU strikes,” he said.

He added that reforms in the tertiary education sector form part of a broader agenda under the Renewed Hope framework, alongside initiatives such as the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which he described as a major success.

According to him, further details of the government’s interventions would be unveiled to demonstrate how the administration has worked to tackle the persistent issue of industrial unrest in public universities.

Highlighting some of the key measures, Olusegun listed the exemption of federal tertiary institutions from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), allowing universities to manage their payrolls independently and improve institutional autonomy.

He also noted the establishment of an expanded negotiation committee that brought all tertiary education unions under a single framework, as well as financial interventions aimed at revitalising universities.

These include the allocation of ₦150 billion in the 2025 budget for university revitalisation, to be disbursed in three tranches of ₦50 billion, and the release of ₦50 billion for Earned Academic Allowances.

Olusegun also pointed to a landmark agreement and salary review signed on January 14, 2026, describing it as a critical step toward stabilising industrial relations in the university system.