Byline: Education & Economy Desk, IDNN
ASUU Rejects Tertiary Loan Scheme
The Academic Staff Union of Universities has described the Federal Government’s new Tertiary Institution Loan Scheme as “an insult to the sensibilities of Nigerian lecturers.” ASUU leaders argue the scheme ignores the union’s core demands on salary review, arrears, and funding, choosing instead to burden workers with loans.
Dr. Ikechukwu Igwenyi, ASUU’s Calabar Zonal Coordinator, said in Uyo:
“How can a government owing salaries and refusing to renegotiate a 17-year-old salary structure now impose a loan on already impoverished workers? This is mockery.”
The union insists that only a proper renegotiation of the 2009 Agreement, payment of withheld salaries, and implementation of promotion arrears can avert another strike.
NANS Vows Shutdown
Students under the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) have vowed to resist any disruption to the academic calendar. NANS Assistant General Secretary, Emmanuel Adejuwon, said in Abuja that students will “shut down roads, airports, and critical infrastructure” if the government fails to resolve the crisis.
“Let it be on record: if this strike is not averted, we will bring the country to a standstill. Nigerian students will not sit idle while our future is wasted,” Adejuwon declared.
A Cycle of Crisis
The ASUU rejection of the tertiary loan scheme deepens a crisis that has plagued Nigeria’s university system for decades. Lecturers complain of underfunded laboratories, overcrowded classrooms, and years of unpaid allowances. Students remain the biggest victims, as repeated strikes elongate study years and undermine academic quality.
Branches of ASUU nationwide echoed similar warnings, with leaders in Ibadan and Abuja insisting that the government must implement the Yayale Ahmed report of February 2025. The report outlined comprehensive reforms meant to address funding, governance, and welfare issues across tertiary institutions.
Pressure on the Government
The Federal Government now faces a tight deadline. ASUU has scheduled a decisive meeting with officials for August 28, 2025, which union leaders say will be their last if no progress is made.
For students, the message is urgent. “The children of politicians study abroad; only the children of ordinary Nigerians suffer these strikes,” Adejuwon said.
The standoff leaves education on the brink. Unless a solution is found, the rejection of the tertiary loan scheme could trigger another shutdown across Nigerian universities, with national consequences.
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