The leadership of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) has raised serious concerns about the ongoing electricity crisis in public universities across Nigeria. For the past three months, many institutions have been forced to operate without electricity, hampering research and other essential academic activities.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday during the association’s national leadership retreat in Abuja, SSANU President Comrade Mohammed Ibrahim expressed frustration with both the federal and state governments for their failure to implement the new N70,000 national minimum wage in public universities, particularly for SSANU members. Ibrahim highlighted that SSANU members, who include professionals such as accountants, lawyers, engineers, and medical workers, are still awaiting the payment of the consequential adjustments.
“We are giving a deadline to both state governments and other employers of labor to implement the new national minimum wage of N70,000 and the payment of consequential adjustments by the end of the first quarter of 2025. If this is not done, decisive action will be taken,” Ibrahim declared.
The SSANU president also commented on an alleged demand for N8 million from each vice chancellor of federal universities by members of the National Assembly in exchange for approving the universities’ budgets. Ibrahim vowed that if this claim were verified, the union would take strong action against the lawmakers involved.
“We will fight the lawmakers if it turns out to be true that they are demanding N8 million from each vice chancellor for budget approval,” Ibrahim said, questioning how universities could possibly come up with the funds for such a demand when many are struggling to pay for basic services like electricity.
Ibrahim added that, as it stands, no public university in Nigeria has sufficient resources to cover its electricity bills, and many institutions have been operating without power for the past three months, further exacerbating the difficulties faced by students and staff alike.
The union leader’s statements underscore the growing dissatisfaction within Nigeria’s higher education sector over poor funding, inadequate infrastructure, and delayed wage payments, as SSANU continues to push for better conditions for its members and the overall improvement of public universities in the country.
