30 PhD holders resigned from Bauchi varsity – ASUU

Sa’adu Zungur University, main gate

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The Academic Staff Union of Universities of the Bauchi State-owned Sa’adu Zungur University has accused the institution’s management of neglecting the welfare and entitlements of lecturers, warning that the situation has become unbearable and life-threatening.

Addressing journalists on Wednesday, the ASUU-SAZU Chairman, Dr. Awwal Hussain said the union was compelled to raise fresh concerns after months of alleged administrative indifference, despite the intervention of the Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed.

Hussain said the union’s struggles had already led to the resignation of 30 PhD holders from the university, adding that the challenges persist even after the intervention of the state government and signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the union and the management.

He lamented that the university management failed to clear accumulated salary arrears as contained in Item 3 of the MoU, which mandated all claims to be settled within 12 months — a deadline that elapsed on December 9, 2020.

“It is on a very painful note that the union draws the attention of stakeholders and the general public to the deliberate, persistent, and unjustifiable lapses of the university management.

“Despite unprecedented funding in the university’s history, the management has failed to honour its obligations,” alleged Hussain.

He added that the management intentionally withheld three months of salary arrears, despite receiving increased monthly funding — which rose from N80 million to over N400 million following Governor Bala Mohammed’s intervention.

The union also expressed concern over the stalled implementation of the Contributory Pension Scheme, stating that although deductions have commenced, the government’s response to the actuarial valuation of pension backlogs had not been received.

The ASUU-ZASU chairman disclosed that several  families of deceased staff were still being denied their entitlements, revealing further that, “More importantly, the benefits of some of our deceased members remain unsettled till today.”

Hussain further accused the management of ignoring official correspondences from the union, citing letters dated August 14, 2025; November 19, 2025; and December 4, 2025, which sought clarification on unpaid entitlements.

“The refusal to respond demonstrates a pattern of disregard, non-transparency, and administrative insincerity,” he added.

He maintained that the union was dissatisfied with the piecemeal payment of the 25 per cent and /35 per cent wage award arrears, insisting that the remaining 2019 minimum wage consequential adjustment must be paid in one tranche.

Hussain highlighted that following a review of the MoU one year after signing, the union rated its implementation at only 30 per cent, citing unresolved issues such as non-payment of pension backlog valuation, incomplete settlement of allowances, non-release of the White Paper on the Visitation Panel Report, failure to re-advertise the position of Bursar, zero implementation of staff training and retention programmes.

The chairman declared the union had already initiated internal processes to resume its suspended strike if the issues remained unresolved.

On its part, efforts to get the university’s reaction were unsuccessful, as its spokesperson, Auwal Hassan, did not respond to inquiries as of press time despite being reached by our correspondent.

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