The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Benin Zone, has rejected the Federal Government’s proposed salary increase.

The Zonal Coordinator, Prof. Monday Lewis Igbafen, announced this in Benin during a press briefing. He said the salary increment offered by the government is too small and cannot stop the ongoing brain drain in Nigerian universities.

According to him, it is disappointing that the Federal Government still shows no real commitment to solving the long-standing issues affecting university education.

He noted that the government must take the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN/ASUU agreement seriously and address all other related matters if it truly wants peace in the system.

Prof. Igbafen explained that the main problems are poor salaries and poor conditions of service, and these issues require urgent and meaningful solutions.

He stressed that ASUU rejected the proposed salary increment because it is insignificant and will not help to stop the steady loss of qualified lecturers to other countries.

He also criticised the government for always claiming to be “in talks with ASUU” without showing real results. He said the union is tired of this back-and-forth approach.

Prof. Igbafen further complained that lecturers are still earning the same salary they have been receiving since 2009, even though the value of the naira has dropped severely.

He explained that when the 2009 salary was set, ₦120 was equal to 1 dollar, but today the naira has lost much of its value. Meanwhile, workers in many other sectors have had their salaries reviewed two or more times.