Members of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) have issued a fresh 14-day ultimatum for the release and payment of arrears contained in the 2026 agreement with the Federal Government.
President of the association, Mohammed Ibrahim, stated this at a news briefing in Abuja, where he read the resolutions of the association’s national executive council meeting that was held at the Federal University Uyo at the weekend.
According to him, even when the 2026 agreement was clear on the modalities to resolve the lingering issues, payments for those arrears have been implemented haphazardly, and demands that the Federal Government complete the payment or risk an indefinite strike action.
The fresh move followed a stern warning issued last Thursday against delays, selective implementation and marginalisation in the rollout of the 2026 FGN/SSANU Agreement, and that the union “will not accept unnecessary delays, selective implementation, marginalisation or any attempt to diminish the financial and non-financial provisions of the agreement.”
Delivering the State of the Union Address at the 56th National Executive Council (NEC) meeting at the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, National President of the union, Mohammed Ibrahim, said implementation had ‘commenced in some universities’ but remained incomplete in others due to “funding and administrative challenges.”
Insisting that the 2026 pact and NEC resolutions must yield measurable benefits, Ibrahim said: “Agreements and NEC resolutions must translate into concrete action and measurable benefits for our members.”
He directed branches and zones to “continue to monitor implementation, maintain accurate and verifiable membership records, document cases of non-compliance or victimisation, and provide timely reports to the National Secretariat.”
Meanwhile, the association also rejected plans to concession King’s College, Lagos.
The association’s rejection of the concession had generated concerns over the ownership and management of the 117-year-old institution, after the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, announced, in August, that the school, set up in 1909 by the colonial government, had been transferred to the Old Boys Association in a 35-year concession plan.
ALSO, the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has kicked against the planned concession, describing the arrangement as a threat to public education and the rights of teachers.
The NUT President, Titus Amba, made the position of the union known yesterday during the 2026 World Teachers’ Day celebration in Abuja.
He was represented at the event by the Deputy National President of the union, Kizito Kalu.
Amba said that while the union recognised the contributions of old students and other stakeholders to the development of educational institutions, it strongly opposed the transfer of the management and operational responsibility of King’s College to a private association.
According to him, the concession represents “a dangerous departure from the principle of public education” and poses a serious threat to the employment security, professional autonomy and workplace rights of teachers.
Guardian newspaper
