The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Abia State University (ABSU) chapter, has rejected the suspension of Professor Nnamdi Nwaeze over a controversial Facebook post, insisting that the lecturer’s reinstatement is now a condition for ending the ongoing industrial action at the university.
The chairman of ASUU-ABSU, Dr Chidi Mbah, said the union had informed the university management and the Abia State Government that it would not accept the suspension, arguing that due disciplinary procedures were not followed.
Mbah made the position known in an interview with Chukwudi Akasike, while also defending claims contained in Nwaeze’s post concerning poor salaries, unpaid entitlements and welfare challenges facing lecturers at the university.
According to him, ASUU had met with university management after the suspension and made it clear that it considered the disciplinary action unacceptable.
“We did not see anything wrong with what Prof Nwaeze did,” Mbah said.
He disputed the university’s claim that the lecturer had accumulated previous offences, saying that the alleged offences were not known to the union and should have been dealt with when they allegedly occurred.
Suspension becomes part of strike demands
Mbah disclosed that he had personally contacted Nwaeze after learning of the suspension and subsequently forwarded the suspension letter to ASUU’s national headquarters.
He said the national leadership directed the Abia State University chapter to resist the suspension.
The ASUU chairman said the union had consequently informed the government that even if its demands on salaries and welfare were met, the strike would not be called off unless Nwaeze was reinstated.
“The suspension is a serious threat, and we must resist it,” he said, arguing that the action could undermine academic freedom and discourage lecturers from speaking about their working conditions.
Mbah also said the Abia State Government had distanced itself from the suspension, telling the union that it did not direct the university’s Vice-Chancellor to suspend Nwaeze.
Lecturers allegedly owed up to 44 months’ salaries
Mbah strongly backed the claims made in Nwaeze’s Facebook post about the financial difficulties confronting ABSU academics.
He alleged that lecturers were still being paid on outdated salary arrangements and that some academics had not received their full salaries following promotions.
He further alleged that lecturers were owed salary arrears ranging from a few months to as much as 44 months in some cases.
“It is not just one person, or 20, or 30. They are many,” he said, adding that some lecturers were owed 17, 30, 35 and 44 months, while others had smaller salary omissions.
He also alleged that ₦473 million deducted from lecturers’ cooperative funds had not been remitted to the cooperative account.
Mbah said the union had been negotiating with the government since 2023 and had attended numerous meetings in an effort to resolve the issues without industrial action.
Indefinite strike began before controversial post
The ASUU chairman clarified that the current strike was not triggered by Nwaeze’s Facebook post.
According to him, the union commenced its industrial action on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, while Nwaeze published the controversial post on Wednesday morning and was suspended later that day.
He described the action as an indefinite, total and comprehensive strike.
The union’s demands, he said, include payment of outstanding salaries and allowances, implementation of agreed salary adjustments, restoration of arrangements allowing lecturers to pay their children’s university fees through salary deductions, and payment of other outstanding entitlements.
He estimated that about 557 lecturers, excluding those employed this year, are affected by the issues.
Union says government approved demands but implementation stalled
Mbah claimed that Governor Alex Otti approved the union’s demands on April 29, but alleged that little had been implemented since then.
He expressed concern that the failure to implement the approval might be attributable to government officials involved in the administrative and financial processes, while stressing that the union’s position was simply that lecturers should receive what was due to them.
The ASUU chairman also said ABSU lecturers had never received the Earned Academic Allowance, which he said academics in other Nigerian universities receive.
He acknowledged infrastructure projects being undertaken at the university by the state government but argued that investment in physical infrastructure should be accompanied by attention to staff welfare.
Government talks offer possible opening
Mbah said the latest meeting between ASUU, the state government and university management had produced some encouragement.
He disclosed that government representatives indicated that the union would receive a response before its planned Congress on Tuesday.
However, he declined to disclose the details of the government’s offer, saying ASUU’s leadership would first present it to members for consideration.
“If Congress accepts the offer, then we will go by it,” he said.
He added that the union remained open to a resolution but would not abandon its demand for Nwaeze’s reinstatement.
ASUU denies political motive
Mbah also rejected allegations that opposition politicians were behind the strike.
He acknowledged his own involvement in politics but insisted that the union’s action was driven by lecturers’ unpaid entitlements and welfare concerns rather than partisan interests.
He said he had personally approached several government officials and political figures to seek a resolution before the strike was declared.
“We gave the government enough time,” he said. “All we are saying is simple: pay us what is due.”
The ASUU chairman said the union had exhausted dialogue, diplomacy, meetings and other avenues before resorting to industrial action.
He maintained that the strike would continue until the union’s concerns, including the suspension of Professor Nwaeze, were satisfactorily addressed.
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