Fresh Crisis Looms! ASUU Threatens New Strike In Taraba Over Broken Promises

The Taraba State University (TSU) chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has issued a warning about the potential resumption of its earlier suspended strike, citing what it described as a deliberate violation of a Memorandum of Action (MoA) signed in January 2025.

The union made this declaration at a press conference in Jalingo on Tuesday.

Speaking at the briefing, ASUU Chairman, Dr. Joshua Mbave Garba, accused the administration of Governor Agbu Kefas of failing to honour critical elements of the agreement—most notably, the monthly release of ₦50 million meant for the payment of Earned Academic Allowances (EAA), scheduled to begin in February 2025.

“Till now, not a single kobo has been paid,” Garba lamented.

He noted that despite enduring severe hardship and demonstrating restraint for the sake of academic stability, the union’s patience has worn thin.

Garba characterized the breach as a deliberate provocation, warning that it threatens the industrial peace ASUU has maintained since suspending the strike in February.

The union also decried what it described as the chronic underfunding of Taraba State University, claiming that it contravenes the institution’s enabling laws.

Of particular concern, according to Garba, is the state government’s failure to establish a viable pension scheme for academic staff.

“What we’ve received so far are nothing more than bureaucratic gestures and hollow promises—lacking both financial backing and a realistic timeline,” he said.

ASUU also criticised the state for failing to hold a scheduled stakeholders’ meeting in early February, which was supposed to map out plans for clearing salary arrears.

Moreover, the union noted that a two-week ultimatum, which expired on July 31, was met with silence from the government.

“This silence is both deafening and dangerous,” Garba asserted. “It signals that agreements with ASUU are meaningless and that the academic workforce is expendable.”

Following internal deliberations, the union resolved to resume the suspended strike unless the government urgently addresses the lingering issues.

While acknowledging Governor Kefas’ efforts to broaden access to education through his free education policy, ASUU insisted that such efforts must not come at the expense of academic staff welfare.

“We are not saboteurs or enemies of progress,” Garba declared. “We are nation builders and knowledge bearers. But we cannot continue to operate in an environment where our welfare is neglected, our rights trampled, and our voices ignored.”