Activities at the University of Benin were disrupted on Monday after the Non-Academic Staff Union and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities began a nationwide strike.
The strike was organized to ensure four months of unpaid salaries owed to members were paid by the federal government.
At a joint meeting held at the Ugbowo Campus sports complex, the leaders of both unions stated that a monitoring committee had been set up to ensure all members complied with the strike.
The national leadership of SSANU and NASU directed their members to go on an indefinite strike after earlier negotiations with the government failed to yield results.
As a result, UNIBEN’s library, health center, and sports complex were closed to students, and only private security staff managed the campus gates.
NASU Chairman at UNIBEN, Anthony Igbinosa, expressed disappointment over the government’s response.
“The president said they should give us 50 percent of what they owe us, which is two months, so we gladly told our people to expect two months’ pay. It’s been almost three months now, and we are being told that the Minister of Finance is holding back the president’s directive. If the president is serious, would an appointee be sitting on his directive?” Igbinosa said.
SSANU’s UNIBEN Chairman, Broderick Osewa, emphasized that a monitoring team would ensure complete compliance with the strike across the university.
“We have decided to commence, and there is a monitoring team that will go around to make sure there is total compliance in our university,” he stated.
With these actions, union leaders hope to push the federal government to address their demands, although it remains unclear how long the strike will last.
