The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Abia State University (ABSU), Uturu Branch, has rejected the suspension of one of its members, Professor Nnamdi Nwaeze, describing the disciplinary action as unacceptable.
The union has also vowed to continue its ongoing indefinite strike until the lecturer is reinstated.
ASUU-ABSU began the industrial action on Tuesday, August 11, over concerns about unpaid salaries and other welfare-related issues affecting members.
However, on Wednesday, August 12, the university management announced the suspension of Professor Nwaeze, a lecturer in the Department of Economics. The university reportedly cited social media posts which it considered detrimental to the interests of the institution and its Visitor, Governor Alex Otti.
Reacting to the development, Chairman of ASUU-ABSU, Dr. Chidi Mbah, said the union had expressed its concerns during a meeting with the university management.
Mbah argued that if the institution had grounds to discipline Nwaeze, it should have followed the procedures provided under the university’s governing edict.
According to him, ASUU did not consider the lecturer’s actions to constitute wrongdoing and was not aware of any previous allegations against him.
“For us in ASUU, we did not see anything wrong with what Prof Nwaeze did. Allegations of previous wrongdoing against the lecturer were neither presented to the union nor known to it. Any alleged offences should have been addressed when they occurred,” he said.
The ASUU chairman also backed some of the concerns raised by Nwaeze regarding lecturers’ salaries and welfare.
Mbah alleged that lecturers at ABSU were still being paid based on the 2009 ASUU-Federal Government salary structure. He further claimed that some promoted academic staff had not been moved to their appropriate salary levels, while several workers were allegedly receiving only part of their monthly salaries.
He also raised concerns over an alleged N473 million deduction from workers’ cooperative funds which, according to him, had yet to be remitted.
Although he acknowledged that the cooperative fund issue began under a previous administration, Mbah maintained that the current government should address it because, in his words, government is a continuum.
He said salary arrears remained a major concern, with some lecturers allegedly owed between two and three months’ salaries, while others were reportedly owed for significantly longer periods.
Mbah claimed that about 557 lecturers, excluding those employed in 2026, were affected by the salary arrears, with some allegedly owed 17, 30 and 35 months’ salaries, while a few had accumulated as much as 44 months in unpaid wages.
“It is not just one person, or 20, or 30. They are many,” he said.
The union chairman further clarified that the strike had already commenced before Nwaeze made the social media post that reportedly triggered his suspension.
He said the lecturer’s post was made on Wednesday morning, while his suspension followed later that same day.
According to Mbah, the national leadership of ASUU subsequently directed the ABSU chapter to oppose the suspension and make the lecturer’s reinstatement one of the conditions for ending the strike.
He said the union would not call off the industrial action even if its other demands were addressed, unless Nwaeze was also recalled.
Mbah expressed concern that the suspension could discourage other lecturers from openly speaking about salary arrears and welfare challenges within the university.
“The suspension is a serious threat, and we must resist it. As ASUU, we will not accept anything that undermines our freedom or the autonomy of the university. Agreements were reached during several meetings but were not implemented,” he said.
The union’s position means the dispute between ASUU-ABSU and the university management remains unresolved, with the lecturer’s suspension now becoming a key issue in the ongoing industrial action.
