Economy
SSANU, NASU Protest FG’s Failure To Meet Demands: JAC
SSANU, NASU Protest FG’s Failure To Meet Demands: JAC
SSANU, NASU protest FG’s failure to meet demands: JAC. The two unions, operating under the Joint Action Committee (JAC), were seen displaying placards with different descriptions of their requests.
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) have staged a peaceful protest over the federal government’s failure to address their demands.
Speaking during the protest on Thursday in Lagos, the NASU chairman, College of Medicine, University of Lagos (CMUL), Ayantoye Bukayo, said the federal government had been so “unjust’ in the way it treated the non-teaching members of staff in universities and inter-university centres.
The two unions, operating under the Joint Action Committee (JAC), were seen displaying placards with different descriptions of their requests.
Mr Bukayo, who decried the federal government’s failure to address long-standing welfare and funding issues affecting their members, said the one-day protest was a nationwide exercise, as members of the union across the country were involved.
According to him, the contentious issues are the alleged unjust disbursement of N50 billion in earned allowances, the delay in renegotiation of the 2009 FGN and NASU/SSANU agreements, and the non-payment of two months’ salaries.
He said others were non-payment of arrears of 25 per cent and 35 per cent salary arrears and non-payment of third-party deductions of the two months’ salaries (May and June 2022).
Mr Bukayo recalled that JAC had issued a seven-day ultimatum to the government on September 15 to address its concerns and extended it to another fourteen days, which expired on Monday, October 6.
“The injustice of sharing when it comes to earned allowances for staff of universities; we have teaching and non-teaching staff in universities and inter-university centres.
“But the FG has channelled its course on how to disburse these funds in a very barbaric way by allocating 80 per cent of it to only one union—the teaching staff, which is the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)—and 20 per cent to the three other unions, including SSANU and NASU.
“We believe that this is very inappropriate, and we say no to it. We want to urge the government to do the needful; we are not a nuisance, and we are not second-class citizens in the university system. We are very important; being non-teaching staff doesn’t mean we are stupid. We know the right thing, and we urge the government to do the right thing, or we will go on a full-fledged strike,” he said.
The acting chairman of SSANU, CMUL, Aladesokun Adegbola, reiterated the need for the government to give fair and equal treatment to all members of staff of the universities.
NASU Protest FG’s Failure To Meet Demands
Mr Adegbola urged the government to intensify efforts to pay the 25 per cent and 35 per cent salary arrears, describing it as money the members of staff have worked for.
“We are the ones that started this negotiation of N50 billion earned allowance, and when the money was released, the way it was shared by the National Universities Commission (NUC) is unjust—80 per cent to the teaching staff and 20 per cent to all other unions.
“The non-teaching staff, being more in number, is supposed to take a higher percentage of the money. It is expected, if not 50/50, that SSANU and other unions should at least take 60 per cent because of their numbers, compared to other unions that were given 80 per cent.
“So, it is injustice, and we are calling on the government to give us our balance of N40 billion to complete the N50 billion we negotiated in the first instance because N10 billion was initially released to us,” Mr Adegbola said.
Similarly, the national executive officer of NASU, Tunde Aderibigbe, assured the commitment of the unions toward the welfare of members’ staff, emphasising the need for equal treatment for all the unions.
Responding to the protesters, the secretary of CMUL, Olayinka Olufemi-Moses, assured that the college management would support the union’s requests and actions, which would be geared toward the welfare of staff.
Strike: Normalcy Returns At FCT Secretariat As Workers Resume
Strike: Normalcy returns at FCT secretariat as workers resume. The FCTA secretariat is bustling with activities as normalcy returns after the suspension of the planned solidarity protest by labour unions on Tuesday.
The secretariat of the Federal Capital Territory Administration is bustling with activities as normalcy returns after the suspension of the planned solidarity protest by labour unions on Tuesday.
The protest was suspended after a truce was reached between FCT minister Nyesom Wike and the labour unions in the early hours of Tuesday.
The workers, who resumed work on Monday, were seen carrying out their activities and providing various services.
A visit to some offices in the Minister’s Block, the Treasury Department, the Federal Capital Development Authority, the Abuja Geographical System, and others on Wednesday showed that workers were at work, carrying out their duties.
The FCTA workers under the Joint Union Action Committee had on January 19 embarked on industrial action over unresolved welfare concerns.
The strike, however, was halted by a ruling of the National Industrial Court on January 27, which ordered the workers to resume work, a decision that didn’t sit well with the union leaders, who insisted that the strike must continue.
A truce was reached after several hours of meeting, from late night Monday to the early hours of Tuesday, between the union leaders, officials of the FCTA, Mr Wike, and the chairman of the Senate Committee on FCT, Mohammed Bomoi.
Reacting to the truce, the minister told journalists after inspecting some ongoing projects in Abuja on Tuesday that there were no winners or losers.
He expressed delight that the union leaders have seen the realities on the ground, which have helped to clear misconceptions.
“I’m happy that the trade union and labour congress came to see things for themselves. Sometimes it’s good. What they were told is not really what’s on the ground.
Wike
“But by and large, we have had a good meeting, and they’ve directed the workers to go back to work, which you can see has been done. So, we’re happy that at the end of the day, there is no winner, no loser. It’s in the interest of Abuja to progress,” he said.
The organised labour had on Tuesday resolved the dispute between JUAC and Mr Wike, leading to the immediate resumption of work by affected employees.
A circular, jointly signed by the secretary-general of the TUC, Nuhu Toro, and the acting general secretary of the NLC, Benson Upah, stated that the minister assured labour of mutual respect and sustained engagement on labour-related matters in the FCT.
It said the parties also agreed that no worker would be victimised for participating in the strike action and that all outstanding cases at the National Industrial Court would be withdrawn immediately.
Following the agreement, the NLC and TUC directed all affected workers to resume duty without delay.
Lagos Assembly Strongly Seeks Suspension Of Makoko Demolition
Lagos assembly strongly seeks suspension of Makoko demolition. The Lagos state house of assembly has called for the suspension of demolition activities in Makoko, Oko-Agbon and Shogunro waterfront communities following protests by displaced residents and growing public concern over the exercise.
The call was announced on Tuesday by Noheem Adams, chairman of an ad hoc committee set up by Mudashiru Obasa, speaker of the house, during a stakeholders’ meeting held at the Lateef Jakande auditorium.
Adams called on all state ministries to cease demolition work and promised compensation to the affected residents.
“On behalf of the speaker and all 40 members of the house, we are directing that all demolitions in Makoko, Oko-Agbon, and Shogunro communities should stop from today until further notice,” New Telegraph quoted Adams as saying.
He called for transparency by demanding the full list of taskforce members and the criteria used for engagement, insisting that residents must be actively involved in the process.
“That the taskforce that was constituted, we want to see the list of the taskforce because we want the residents to be duly involved and to be carried along. So we want to have the schedule of those task forces and the criteria for those that we are inviting,” Adams added.
Lagos Assembly
“To the residents of Makoko, Oko-Agbon and Shogunro communities, as your representatives, we are giving you all assurances that they will stop demolitions henceforth and there will be compensations for all those whose properties have been demolished.”
Stephen Ogundipe, member of the ad-hoc, said there is need for clear communication, adding that residents targeted for relocation or redevelopment must be informed of the government’s plans in advance.
Babatunde Olajide, special adviser to governor of Lagos on E-GIS and urban renewal, confirmed that $2 million had been earmarked since 2021 to transform Makoko into a modern, internationally compliant water city.
He said enumeration of affected properties is underway and reiterated the administration’s commitment to handling the situation with a human face, prioritizing resident safety and fair compensation.
Yusuf Sagra, baale of Makoko, described the assembly’s decision as a “word of peace,” while Orioye Ogungbure, another leader of the community, praised the “democratic responsiveness” of the government.
EFCC Arrests Kannywood Star, Samha Inuwa for Alleged Naira Mutilation In Viral Video
EFCC arrests Kannywood Star, Samha Inuwa for alleged naira mutilation in viral video. The Kano Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Tuesday, February 3, 2026 arrested a Kannywood Star, Samha Inuwa over alleged Naira mutilation.
Inuwa was arrested following a viral video circulated on social media platforms where she was seen conspicuously cleaning mucus from her nose using Naira notes.
EFCC
Following the release of the viral video, the Commission swung into action by tracing and subsequently arrested her to answer questions.
She is currently being held at the Commission’s detention facility while investigation is ongoing.
The suspect will be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations.
Dele Oyewale
Head, Media & Publicity
February 3, 2026
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