The Academic Staff Union of Universities at Taraba State University has issued a final warning to the state government, threatening to resume industrial action over alleged violations of agreements signed earlier this year regarding academic staff welfare and compensation.
During a press briefing in Jalingo on Tuesday, ASUU Chairman Dr. Joshua Mbave Garba revealed that the union is prepared to restart its previously suspended strike following what the organization characterized as deliberate government failures to honor commitments made in a Memorandum of Action signed in January 2025.
The central dispute revolves around the state government’s failure to implement monthly disbursements of ₦50 million designated for Earned Academic Allowances, which were scheduled to begin in February 2025. According to Dr. Garba, despite the formal agreement and subsequent months of waiting, no payments have been made to eligible academic staff members.
The ASUU leader emphasized that university faculty have demonstrated considerable patience and restraint while enduring significant financial hardship, but described the government’s inaction as a calculated provocation that undermines the industrial peace maintained since the union suspended its previous strike in February.
Beyond the immediate payment disputes, the union has raised broader concerns about systematic underfunding of Taraba State University, which they claim violates the institution’s founding legal framework. Dr. Garba specifically criticized the absence of a functional pension scheme for academic personnel, describing government responses as consisting of empty bureaucratic procedures without substantive financial commitments or implementation timelines.
The union expressed particular frustration over the government’s failure to convene a stakeholders’ meeting originally scheduled for early February, which was intended to establish a comprehensive plan for resolving outstanding salary arrears affecting university staff. Additionally, ASUU noted that a two-week ultimatum issued to the government expired on July 31 without any official response or acknowledgment.
Dr. Garba characterized the government’s silence as unacceptable and dangerous, suggesting it signals that formal agreements with academic unions lack binding authority and that university staff are considered expendable by state leadership.
While acknowledging Governor Agbu Kefas’s efforts to expand educational access through free education policies, the union stressed that academic staff welfare cannot be sacrificed in pursuit of broader educational goals.
The ASUU chairman emphasized that university faculty members are committed to educational progress and national development but cannot continue operating effectively under conditions of neglected welfare and ignored contractual obligations. The union has indicated that resumption of strike action will proceed unless the government addresses these longstanding issues with immediate effect.
