ASUU President Calls on FEC to Tackle Economic Hardship and University Rot
The President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Christopher Piwuna, has made a passionate appeal to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to urgently address the severe economic hardship facing Nigerians.
Speaking in Abuja on Wednesday during the official unveiling of the 2025 agreement between the Federal Government and ASUU, Prof. Piwuna urged the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, to serve as a voice for the suffering masses within the cabinet.
“Honourable ministers, when you go to the next Federal Executive Council, please tell your colleagues that the economic situation in this country is still hard, that meals are hard to come by, that transportation is still a challenge, families are struggling to keep body and soul together,” Piwuna stated.
While lamenting the economic crunch, the ASUU leader acknowledged recent improvements in national security, commending the security agencies for their renewed vigour.
“Tell those in charge of security that we have noticed that they are up now and doing… we support them and we want them to do better,” he added.
In a move to engage with the government’s economic reforms, Piwuna extended an open invitation to the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Dr. Taiwo Oyedele, to attend the union’s next National Executive Council meeting.
He expressed the union’s readiness to share ideas on how to improve the tax reform process for the benefit of the nation.
“We believe we have a few ideas to share with him, how he can do his work better. We think he can support us, we can support him,” Piwuna explained.
The event marked the culmination of a renegotiation process that began in 2017 to review the 2009 Federal Government-ASUU pact.
The new 2025 agreement focuses on improved conditions of service, funding, university autonomy, and academic freedom.
However, Piwuna also used the platform to raise alarms over internal governance issues within the university system.
He criticized the “weak governance structures” in some institutions which he claimed were undermining accountability.
Specifically, he condemned the promotion practices in certain newly-established federal universities of education, alleging that due process for professorial appointments was being compromised.
He called on Vice-Chancellors of the affected institutions to urgently review such promotions to protect the integrity of the Nigerian university system.
