The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has called on the Nasarawa State Government to urgently settle outstanding financial obligations linked to the ongoing Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike at Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), as students continue to push for the restoration of academic activities.
The call comes nearly a month after the NSUK chapter of ASUU declared a total and indefinite strike over unresolved welfare and financial issues affecting academic staff.
ASUU commenced the industrial action on August 10, citing the non-implementation of the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU agreement and other outstanding local demands. The union has also identified unpaid Earned Academic Allowance, salary-related arrears and other entitlements among the issues fuelling the dispute. Reports have put the outstanding obligations at more than N3 billion.
NANS is now urging the Nasarawa State Government to take decisive steps towards resolving the financial issues and creating the conditions necessary for lecturers to return to their classrooms.
The development comes as pressure continues to mount from students who have been affected by the disruption to lectures and other academic activities. Students have repeatedly appealed to the government, ASUU and university management to reach an agreement that will allow them to return to school.
The state government, however, has maintained that it is committed to resolving the dispute. Secretary to the Nasarawa State Government, Labaran Magaji Shuaibu, said the administration would honour its financial commitments to the institution and urged students to continue pursuing dialogue rather than protests.
The government has attributed delays partly to due-process requirements and administrative procedures, while assuring students that efforts are ongoing to address the issues.
Earlier, Governor Abdullahi Sule met with ASUU and other university-based unions as part of efforts to find a lasting solution to the industrial dispute. The meeting was described by the university as a significant step towards restoring normal academic and administrative activities.
ASUU, meanwhile, has maintained a firm position on implementation. At the height of the dispute, branch chairman Zubairu Loko said, “Dialogue without implementation cannot continue indefinitely,” while insisting that agreements reached with government must be honoured.
With students increasingly demanding a return to campus, attention is now firmly on the Nasarawa State Government, ASUU and NSUK management to translate ongoing negotiations into concrete action and bring the prolonged academic shutdown to an end.
