The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has called on the Federal Government to extend the seven-year moratorium on the issuance of licences for the establishment of new universities to the state government to prevent the total collapse of state-owned higher institutions.

ASUU made the demand as university lecturers warned that a fresh confrontation with the Federal Government might be unavoidable, citing unfulfilled agreements and what they described as the continued lack of genuine commitment during negotiations.

While asking the government to fulfil its promises in meeting its demands, the union insisted that the union would not hesitate to resort to full-blown strike action on the expiration of its one-month ultimatum.

Addressing a press conference yesterday in Kano, ASUU Zonal Chairman, Kano Zone, Prof. Abdulkadir Mohammed, expressed concern over the proliferation of universities without proper funding, especially by state governments.

ASUU recalled that its two-week warning strike in October was suspended to allow for meaningful dialogue and to acknowledge the goodwill of students, parents, the NLC, the National Assembly, and other concerned Nigerians.

Abdulkadir condemned what he described as government propaganda, misrepresenting the status of the negotiations. He criticised the persistent neglect of the education sector, warning that treating education as a commodity undermined national development and security.

The warning on an imminent strike was issued by the Abuja Zonal Coordinator of ASUU, Prof. Adam Al-Amin Abdullahi, at a press conference in Abuja yesterday.

He warned that a fresh confrontation with the Federal Government might be unavoidable, citing unfulfilled agreements and what he described as a continued lack of genuine commitment during negotiations.

Abdullahi, who was represented by the Chairman of ASUU at Yakubu Gowon University (formerly University of Abuja), Dr Sylvanus Ugoh, said the union was compelled to brief Nigerians “because the issues at the heart of our struggle remain far from resolved.”

He recalled that ASUU’s National Executive Council (NEC) had considered the government’s proposals on October 21, 2025, and accepted them in good faith, even though they were extremely inadequate.

A key area of contention, he stated, remained the issue of salaries and conditions of service.