The Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Abia State University chapter, Dr Chidi Mba, has said the union will not suspend its ongoing strike until suspended lecturer, Prof Nnamdi Nwaeze, is reinstated.

 

Mba, who spoke with CHUKWUDI AKASIKE, also discussed the suspension of Nwaeze, the union’s demands over salaries and welfare, and the prolonged disputes between ASUU-ABSU and the Abia State Government.

 

He said the union had rejected Nwaeze’s suspension and insisted that any disciplinary action against the lecturer should follow the procedures provided under the university’s edict.

 

“We had a meeting with the management of the university, and we, as ASUU, made our position clear on the suspension. We told them that we would not accept it for any reason and that, if there was any justification for the suspension, the laid-down procedures in the university’s edict should have been followed,” Mba said.

 

According to him, ASUU did not consider Nwaeze’s Facebook post to constitute an offence warranting suspension.

 

The university had reportedly cited accumulated acts of wrongdoing by the lecturer, but Mba said the union was not aware of any previous allegations against him.

 

“If there had been any previous offence, we expected the institution to have acted on it at the time. For them to suspend him now, we do not accept it,” he said.

 

Mba also backed the claims made by Nwaeze regarding the salaries and welfare of lecturers, saying the issues formed part of the reasons behind the industrial action.

 

He said ABSU lecturers were still being paid under the 2009 ASUU-Federal Government salary structure and that promoted lecturers were not being paid according to the appropriate salary scale.

 

According to him, the dispute goes beyond the Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance, as lecturers were allegedly receiving only part of their salaries.

 

He also alleged that N173 million deducted from lecturers’ cooperative funds had not been remitted to their account, although he noted that the deduction occurred under a previous administration.

 

Mba said the union considered the government a continuum and therefore expected the current administration to address the outstanding obligations.

 

He further confirmed claims that some lecturers were owed several months of salaries.

 

According to him, the outstanding salary periods vary, with some lecturers allegedly owed 17 months, others 30 or 35 months, while some are owed as much as 44 months. Others, he said, were owed smaller periods ranging from two to 10 months.

 

Mba disclosed that the union met with the government on Friday to discuss the strike.

 

He said ASUU-ABSU told the government that it would not back down until its demands were addressed, but declined to disclose the government’s offer because the union leadership would first present it to its members.

 

“We will hold a Congress on Tuesday, and by then we will relay what the government has offered. If the members approve it, we will call off the strike,” he said.

 

However, Mba maintained that even if the government meets the union’s financial and welfare demands, the strike will not be suspended unless Nwaeze is reinstated.

 

He said he had personally contacted the suspended lecturer and obtained a copy of his suspension letter after it was issued.

 

Mba said he forwarded the letter to ASUU’s national headquarters, which directed the university chapter to resist the suspension.

 

“Today, we made it clear to the government that even if they meet all our demands, we will not call off the strike unless the suspended professor is reinstated,” he said.

 

According to him, the state government denied involvement in Nwaeze’s suspension, saying it did not direct the Vice-Chancellor to take the action.

 

Mba said the Vice-Chancellor was present during the meeting between the government and ASUU, but the union insisted that the suspension must be reversed before it would suspend its strike.

 

On the strike itself, Mba said the action began on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, and was indefinite, total and comprehensive.

 

He clarified that the strike was already underway before Nwaeze made the Facebook post that led to his suspension.

 

“The strike began on Tuesday, while he made the post on Wednesday morning and was suspended later that same day,” he said.

 

Mba said the union’s action was the result of years of unsuccessful dialogue and negotiations with the government.

 

He said ASUU had been engaging the government since 2023, attending meetings and reaching agreements that he alleged were later not implemented.

 

According to him, the union had written to government officials, commissioners, the Chief of Staff, technical committees and other relevant authorities before resorting to industrial action.

 

He said ASUU-ABSU had attended more than 30 meetings in Umuahia in an effort to resolve the issues before the strike was approved.

 

“If not for the rigorous process ASUU follows, we would have gone on strike a long time ago. We started this process long before the strike was approved,” he said.

 

Mba also rejected claims that opposition politicians were behind the strike.

 

He said the union had given the government sufficient time to address its grievances and had deliberately pursued dialogue to prevent the dispute from being politicised.

 

“I am also a politician. I am the ASUU chairman in ABSU and the President-General of Uturu. I met Amaobi Ogar, Uche Ogar, a former minister, the Attorney-General from Isuikwuato, and even the Chief of Staff personally. I begged and pleaded because I did not want this issue to degenerate into claims that the opposition was behind it,” he said.

 

“All we are saying is simple: pay us what is due.”

 

The ASUU chairman said the union’s 14-day ultimatum had prompted the government to establish a committee, to which ASUU nominated a representative.

 

He said the union had initially expected the committee to help resolve the matter but later became concerned that it was delaying the process.

 

Mba, however, said Governor Alex Otti had approved the union’s demands on April 29 but alleged that none of the approvals had been implemented.

 

“We received the governor’s approval on April 29. He approved everything, but from April till now, nothing has been implemented. Something is fishy. Something is wrong somewhere,” he said.

 

Asked who he believed was responsible for the alleged failure to implement the approvals, Mba mentioned the governor’s aides or officials, the Head of Service and the Accountant-General.

 

He said the welfare situation had severely affected lecturers’ standard of living.

 

According to him, ABSU lecturers were also yet to benefit from Earned Academic Allowance, which he said lecturers in other universities receive.

 

“Absolutely. We have never experienced what the Earned Academic Allowance looks like. We only hear that lecturers in other universities receive it,” he said.

 

Mba acknowledged the construction of new structures at the university by the Otti administration but said staff welfare remained a major concern.

 

“If you visit Abia State University today, you will see new structures being erected by the governor, and I commend him for that. But the welfare of staff is almost non-existent,” he said.

 

He also disclosed that lecturers had been struggling to pay their children’s school fees.

 

According to him, an earlier arrangement allowed the university fees of lecturers’ children to be deducted directly from their salaries, but the arrangement was discontinued.

 

He said the union was demanding the restoration of the policy to make it easier for lecturers to pay their children’s fees through salary deductions.

 

Mba said the current situation had created additional difficulties for lecturers, particularly those with children studying in universities.

 

The ASUU-ABSU chairman disclosed that the chapter has about 557 lecturers, excluding those employed in 2026.

 

He urged the affected lecturers to remain calm and assured them that the union leadership would continue to pursue their demands.

 

“I want to tell them to remain calm. Their leadership is with them. We understand their pain, and we must get it right this time. We are not going to back out,” he said.

 

Mba said the union would continue the struggle despite allegations that political interests were influencing its actions.

 

“We will pursue this matter to the end,” he added.

 

He also said the union was concerned that Nwaeze’s suspension could have implications for academic freedom and lecturers’ willingness to speak about their welfare.

 

According to him, ASUU would resist any action capable of undermining the freedom of its members or the autonomy of the university.

 

Mba said the union’s meeting with the government, ABSU management and other stakeholders initially produced little encouragement, but became more positive after ASUU insisted that Nwaeze’s suspension must be lifted.

 

He said the union was told that a response on the matter would be communicated before Tuesday.

 

Mba maintained that the strike would continue until the union’s demands, including the reinstatement of the suspended professor, were addressed.

 

“Even if they meet all our demands, we will not call off the strike unless the suspended professor is reinstated,” he reiterated.