The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has revealed that 84 of its members passed away between May and August 2024, primarily due to economic hardship and unpaid salaries. ASUU President, Emmanuel Osodeke, shared this information during an interview on Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, aired on Channels Television.
“In the past three months, from May to August, Nigerian universities lost 84 academics to death. This is the consequence of what our people are enduring,” Osodeke stated.
The ASUU president also called for increased funding for university education and criticized the government’s handling of the 2022 industrial action, during which lecturers’ salaries were withheld under the “no work, no pay” policy.
Osodeke emphasized the need for better motivation and improved welfare for lecturers, citing his own experience of earning N420,000 per month as a professor for 15 years. He warned that without adequate compensation, Nigerian lecturers would struggle to compete globally.
