Nigerian Universities May Lose Complete Session As Admission Seekers Remain Stranded Since 2021 Over Strike

It is no longer news that the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has been on strike for a very long time now.

The union has been on strike for as many as seven months with no end in sight, suggesting that universities may lose a whole session.

The strike, which the union generally evaluated on a monthly basis, is now indefinite, with neither the Buhari government nor the striking lecturers willing to compromise. 

The development has caused chaos in the school system, with a group of students unable to resume their admission processes last year, while another group of students sat for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, this year, 2022.

With the advancement, two groups of new students, 2021 and 2022, are now awaiting the start of their academic careers at various universities.

Speaking with Daily Post, a university worker said, “As it stands now, we have two sets of students ready to resume academic session. Those admitted in 2021 were to resume after the second semester examination early this year, 2022, but their dreams were cut short by the strike.

“Now, another set of students sat for the UTME this year, 2022, waiting for admission processes.

“You know that universities have been trying hard to recover from the COVID-19 lockdown, during which schools were shut down, and now we have this prolonged ASUU strike. I really don’t know how this would be handled.”

ASUU embarked on a four-week warning strike on February 14.

On March 14, the union extended the industrial action by another two months to allow the government to meet all of its demands. A 12-week extension was announced on May 9.

Since May 9, the union has remained on strike, vowing to persist until its demands are met.

The academics are seeking improved welfare, revitalisation of public universities and academic autonomy among other demands.