By Gabriel Dike
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Lagos State University (LASU) branch says its members in the four campuses of LASU are not on any indefinite strike.
The ASUU-LASU branch executives recognized by the national body in a statement debunked the insinuation that its members are part of the ongoing strike in LASU that have disrupted activities in the Ojo, Epe, LASUCOM and Badagry campuses.
A statement signed by the immediate past chairman of ASUU-LASU and a member of the executives, Dr. Adekunle Idris and dated August 1st, 2025, said the union is in receipt of a strike notice by labour unions in LASU over “carry over” from previous industrial action and bordered on welfare issues, and are legitimate.
The union however backed the ongoing indefinite strike by the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) and National Association of Academic of Technologists (NAAT) and stated that their demands are genuine.
“For us in ASUU-LASU, it is necessary to make the point that despite our unconditional solidarity with our sister unions in this matter, we have not officially declared a strike action. The simple reason for this is that ASUU has a time-tested template for embarking on strike.
“The decision to go on strike must first be taken at a congress, and then transmitted to NEC through the Zone for approval. NEC, usually will send a visitation team to assess the situation and provide a feedback that will then guide the decision to approve a strike action or not.
“We have not activated this process, despite a litany of unresolved issues that we have with the state government. From the unresolved unconditional recall of our unjustly dismissed leaders, to the non-release of the report of the panel, about four years after, the refusal to pay earned academic allowances among others, there are many issues affecting the Lagos State University, which we believe the government has continued to handle with levity.”
The former ASUU chairman added that the issues have not resulted in a resolution of congress declaring a trade dispute in line with the Constitution of the union.
He said for some colleagues who are frustrated with the current sufferings and denials, the ASUU approach appears a bit slow and for that the union is guilty as charged.
“In the light of this therefore, we believe that members of the union, given their understanding of the history of its struggle, remain committed to challenging and expressing our grievances the right ways,” he stated.
Idris dissociated ASUU-LASU from any unauthorized release purporting to have declared a trade dispute with LASU management.
He urged members to see through the opportunitunism of those who in violation of numerous congress decisions took side with previous administration several years ago and described its demands for the EAA and other benefits as premature.
His words: “Their attempts to pose as the repentant, emergency defendants of the interests of the teeming members of ASUU-LASU is nothing but a change of tactics in a desperate bid to stay relevant, using such posture to extract personal benefits from the very system that created and has continued to prop them to undermine the union and prevent it from being cohesive and united, to the benefit of all.”
He urged the university administration and leadership of the sister unions to ensure in the spirit of solidarity, the safety and security of its members on the various campuses.
Idris called on the state government and LASU management to address the lingering issues, including those contained in the demands of the three other unions, in order to prevent the declared strike from snowballing into a major industrial crisis in the university.
According to him, despite not being on strike, ASUU-LASU aligns with the legitimate agitation of the three unions while insisting that LASU management and the state government have the wherewithal to resolve the issues in contention, provided there is the political will.
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