The Lumine News

Tag: #ASUU UNICROSS

  • UNICROSS ASUU Suspends Strike After Gov Otu’s Intervention

    UNICROSS ASUU Suspends Strike After Gov Otu’s Intervention

    By Elijah Ugani 

    Academic activities are set to resume at the University of Cross River State (UNICROSS) following the suspension of the nearly two-month-old strike by the institution’s branch of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) after the intervention of Governor Bassey Edet Otu.

    The suspension was announced on Monday afternoon by the Chairman of ASUU-UNICROSS, Dr. Patrick Ushie, shortly after a meeting with the state government. He directed lecturers to return to work and asked students to resume academic activities on Tuesday.

    The development brings relief to thousands of students who have been out of classrooms since the union embarked on a total and indefinite strike on May 19, 2026.

    ASUU had declared the strike over 11 demands bordering on lecturers’ welfare, salary arrears, and the implementation of agreements reached with the Federal Government.

    Among the union’s demands were the implementation of the 2025 FG-ASUU renegotiated agreement, payment of Continuous Academic Training Allowance, Earned Academic Allowance and other professional allowances, prompt payment of salaries not later than the third day of every month, improved government funding for the university, payment of arrears arising from the 35 and 25 per cent wage awards dating back to January 2023, outstanding promotion arrears and earned academic allowances from 2011, remittance of ₦11.9 million in check-off dues owed since 2017, payment of ₦69 million in cooperative deductions, and remittance of National Housing Fund deductions withheld since 2018.

    At the onset of the strike, Dr. Ushie said negotiations with the university management had broken down after management attributed its inability to meet the demands to inadequate funding.

    According to him, the university receives about ₦300 million monthly as government subvention but requires an additional ₦200 million to meet its financial obligations to staff.

    As the industrial action entered its seventh week, the Cross River State Government initiated fresh negotiations with the union, leading to the establishment of a technical committee to review the issues raised by ASUU and recommend lasting solutions.

    Governor Otu subsequently inaugurated a seven-member Technical Committee chaired by Prof. Uduak Effiong to undertake a comprehensive assessment of staff welfare, governance, and the university’s operating environment.

    On July 14, the Governor met separately with the university management and student leaders, assuring them of his administration’s commitment to improving infrastructure and addressing welfare concerns. He pledged to provide additional operational vehicles for the institution, upgrade the university’s medical centre, and improve the internal road network.

    The UNICROSS dispute had also drawn national attention after the ASUU Calabar Zone threatened to extend industrial action to state-owned universities in Abia, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi and Cross River states over the failure of state governments to implement the 2025 FG-ASUU agreement.

    The zonal leadership described the welfare situation at UNICROSS as particularly severe, alleging that lecturers had received only half salaries for years and that one member had died amid the prolonged hardship.

    With the suspension of the strike, lecturers are expected to return to classrooms immediately, while students have been directed to resume on Tuesday, bringing an end to nearly two months of disruption to academic activities.

  • BREAKING: ASUU To Write Authorities On Expiration of Tenure UNICROSS Governing Council Members

    By Simon Odey 

    The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Cross River State (UNICROSS) chapter, has resolved to write to relevant authorities, notifying them of the expiration of the tenure of the governing council’s internal members.

    At its congress held today at the university main campus in Calabar, the union said that although it is within the powers of the Governor and Visitor to the university to appoint external members, it’ll play its part by ensuring elections are held for nomination of new internal members.

    Recall that the university alumni association has in several letters and statements demanded clarification on the legitimacy and tenure of the governing council who have stayed in office beyond the four-year term allowed by law.

    The association has also in a recent statement threatened to drag the university before the National Universities Commission over the legality of the reappointment of an Acting Vice Chancellor who had previously exceeded the six months limit allowed by law.

    Demanding that the incumbent Acting Vice Chancellor, Prof. David Ogar be either made a substantive VC or another person appointed to bring some stability to the university, the association lamented that the university is at the risk of losing N4 billion TETFund allocation over the leadership crisis brewing in the institution.

    When contacted to react to the ASUU resolution, President of the association, Dr. Inyali Peter, citing extant laws and standard university practices, said that internal members are elected to represent various interests in a specific council and not just open four years term.

    “This is a great news for the university. Some people have misconstrued our agitations but we’re happy that a ASUU has joined us to correct the anomaly. The only thing I want to add is that contrary to some insinuations, the lifespan of all council members except the Alumni President is tied to the lifespan of a specific council. For instance, if internal members are elected to represent either the senate or unions in a particular council like the 10th or 9th council, and the Visitor dissolves and reconstitutes the council before the expiration of the tenure, they’ll all leave even though they’re elected and not appointed.

    The implication of this is that, ASUU cannot say the tenure of internal members is in isolation or that the internal members can stay as long as the Governor wants. The law says the tenure is four years. Therefore, even though I presume they want to try to please everybody, as they’re writing relevant authorities on this, they’re also saying that this particular council’s tenure has expired because they were elected into this council. However, the Visitor, if satisfied with the achievements of the council can reappoint the external members into the new council. This is the standard practice everywhere including our sister university, the university of Calabar.

    He added that “the key question now is whether the government will reconstitute a new council anytime soon to enable the immediate commencement of the process for appointing a substantive Vice Chancellor. While only time will tell, as an alumni association, we are once again calling on the Governor and Visitor to act decisively to bring the needed stability to the institution”.