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 current administration, noting that the union has embarked on only one strike since 2023.
Olusegun attributed the development to targeted government interventions in the education sector. He made the claim in a statement posted on his verified X handle on Tuesday.
According to him, the lone action was a nine-day warning strike, which he said marked a clear shift from what he described as years of frequent and prolonged strikes under previous administrations.
“ASUU has only gone on strike once since the inception of the Renewed Hope administration—a warning strike that lasted nine days. This represents a different trajectory from the previous annual strikes and did not happen by chance,” Olusegun said.
However, checks by newsmen indicate that while no prolonged nationwide strike has occurred since President Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, the union has issued multiple ultimatums and carried out brief warning actions over unresolved issues, including funding and unpaid allowances.
The presidential aide further claimed that the Federal Government had made progress in addressing longstanding disputes with ASUU, citing the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement as a major breakthrough.
“With the recent announcement by the Federal Government following the renegotiation of the 2009 agreements, we may have placed a final nail in the coffin of ASUU strikes,” he said.
Olusegun said the interventions form part of broader education reforms under the Renewed Hope agenda, alongside initiatives such as the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).
He listed key measures to include the removal of federal tertiary institutions from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), the creation of a unified negotiation committee for tertiary unions, and budgetary provisions of ₦150 billion for university revitalisation in the 2025 budget.
Other steps, he added, include the release of ₦50 billion for earned academic allowances and the signing of a landmark agreement and salary review on January 14, 2026.