The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has reported the deaths of 84 of its members between May and August 2024, attributing these losses to economic hardship and unpaid salaries.
ASUU President, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, made this revelation during an appearance on Channels Television’s socio-political programme “Inside Sources” with Laolu Akande.
“In the past three months, from May to August 2024, Nigerian universities lost 84 academics to death because of what our people are going through,” Osodeke stated.
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He emphasized the very serious and urgent problems that university staff are currently experiencing. He pointed out that the government is still not paying salaries to these staff members and is taking actions that make their situation even worse, such as increasing the prices of fuel and electricity. These price hikes come at a time when many people are already struggling with their finances, and it adds another layer of difficulty for the university employees who are trying to make ends meet.
Osodeke expressed strong disapproval of the Federal Government’s policy known as “no-work, no-pay,” which impacts the payment of salaries during periods of strike. He expressed his concern by saying that even in the midst of this serious crisis, the government is still withholding the pay of individuals for three and a half months or even longer under this policy, which he finds to be unfair and troubling. He believes that during such hard times, it is unacceptable to deny workers their hard-earned wages simply because they are involved in a strike for better conditions.