By ACADEMIC activities at the University of Uyo (Uniuyo), Akwa Ibom State, were, on Tuesday, disrupted as lecturers, under the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), staged a protest over poor salaries, withheld wages and government neglect of public universities.
The demonstration forced the suspension of all examinations scheduled to begin the same day, as lecturers converged on the Town Campus, Annex and Ikpa Road Campus, carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Our salaries are too poor,” “Pay us sustainable living wages,” “Treat lecturers with dignity,” and “Government please sign and implement our renegotiated agreement.”
Prof Opeyemi Olajide, Chairperson of ASUU Uniuyo, lamented at the main campus that university lecturers had been on the same salary scale for over 16 years despite worsening economic realities.
“Today, lecturers are protesting to let the world know how the federal government treats us with disdain. It has destroyed the public primary and secondary school system and is now doing the same with universities,” he said.
Olajide further noted that three and a half months’ salaries were still being withheld despite lecturers having completed their work, accusing the federal government of neglecting infrastructure in public universities.
“No examination will hold today. Go home!” he told students waiting for their Computer Based Test (CBT), warning that the union might embark on an indefinite strike if its demands were ignored.
Former ASUU Chairperson, Uniuyo branch, Dr Nwachukwu Anyim, condemned the disparity between stagnant lecturers’ wages and the frequent review of salaries for political office holders.
“If lecturers can be on the same salary for over 15 years while government considers increasing pay for politicians already earning huge salaries, that is wickedness of the highest order,” he said.
He added that withheld salaries and unfair deductions had plunged many lecturers into debt, stressing that the protest was a last resort to highlight their plight.
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