Lagos varsity lecturers begin strike over 40% pay - Punch Newspapers

Lecturers in three state-owned universities have embarked on an indefinite strike over the alleged failure of the Lagos State Government to meet their demands, including the 40 per cent salary increase approved by President Bola Tinubu’s administration. Saturday PUNCH learnt that the academic staff at the Lagos State University, Lagos State University of Science and Technology, and Lagos State University of Education had earlier issued a 14-day ultimatum to the state government to implement the 2025 FG/ASUU agreement or face industrial action. The notice of the industrial action was contained in a letter dated September 15, 2026, signed by the Acting Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, LASU branch, Olusegun Babalola, his counterpart in LASUED, Grace Abimbola, and ASUU-LASUSTECH Chairman, Murisiku Onigemo. The letter, addressed to the state Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, was obtained by Saturday PUNCH on Thursday. According to the union, the strike was necessitated by the continued non-implementation of the FGN/ASUU 2025 Agreement, which, among other things, increased salaries of lecturers by 40 per cent and was to commence on January 1, 2026, across universities.See more Punch stories on Google.Add Punch on Google However, the lecturers said the salary increase had yet to be implemented in Lagos state-owned universities almost nine months later. They stated that several state governments, including Ogun, Abia, Osun, Ekiti, and Enugu, had responded to the agreement by domesticating and commencing its implementation in their respective state-owned universities. A copy of the letter read partly, “Conversely, a number of state-owned universities where the agreement remains unimplemented are currently engaged in industrial action. 2027: Obi’ll win Lagos by wider margin – NDC Delicious or Disaster unveils N10m prize for third season Lagos LCDA chairman congratulates Hamzat at 62 “In Lagos State, the Union has demonstrated considerable restraint, patience and commitment to dialogue in the face of the prolonged failure of the government to address this matter. The union has exhausted virtually all avenues of engagement, including meetings, correspondences, public statements, press engagements and other legitimate channels of consultation, without securing the required commitment towards full implementation. “The continued non-implementation of the agreement in the three Lagos State-owned universities has consequently created an untenable situation in which academic staff in Lagos State are denied conditions of service already being enjoyed by their counterparts in several other State-owned universities.” The lecturers maintained that the strike action would remain in force until the state government fully domesticates and implements the FGN/ASUU agreement. “Visitor sir, this action is regrettable because it is avoidable. It has become necessary only because the union’s sustained efforts for peaceful resolution have not yielded the requisite governmental action. The union remains committed to a firm and constructive resolution of the dispute and urges your excellency, as Visitor to the universities, to intervene decisively towards the full domestication and implementation of the Agreement and the restoration of industrial harmony in the Lagos State university system,” it added. However, the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Tertiary Education, Kasali Adeniran, told Saturday PUNCH that the government had had engagements with the union, saying work was ongoing for final approval of the agreement. “Concerning the FG agreement, we have had several engagements with the union, and we have had mutual agreement. Work is ongoing, just awaiting final approval of all that we have discussed. That is the stage we are in,” he said on Thursday. Kindly share this story:

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