The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, Lagos Zone, has warned that three Lagos State-owned universities may be plunged into another round of industrial crisis over the alleged failure of the Lagos State Government to implement the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU Agreement.
The affected institutions are Lagos State University, LASU; Lagos State University of Education, LASUED; and Lagos State University of Science and Technology, LASUSTECH.
The union issued the warning at a press conference held on Thursday at LASUSTECH, where it accused the state government of neglecting lecturers’ welfare despite repeated engagements with government officials.
Addressing journalists, the ASUU Lagos Zone Coordinator, Adesola Nassir, said the continued delay in implementing the agreement had left lecturers in the three institutions feeling neglected, undervalued and uncertain about the government’s commitment to their welfare.
According to him, the state government’s failure to act six months after the agreement was signed has created anxiety across the institutions and may trigger avoidable industrial unrest.
Nassir said the Lagos Zone of ASUU was ready to support any action taken by its branches in LASU, LASUED and LASUSTECH to compel the state government to honour the agreement.
He said Lagos, which prides itself as the “Centre of Excellence,” should not lag behind other states that have already commenced implementation of the agreement.
“How can a government demand world-class university rankings while failing to create world-class conditions for academic work? How can excellence flourish where welfare remains uncertain? How can innovation thrive amid recurring industrial tension?” Nassir queried.
He said no government could legitimately claim excellence while the intellectual workforce responsible for producing excellence was subjected to prolonged uncertainty over agreed welfare commitments.
The union argued that lecturers’ welfare is central to academic stability, research output, institutional growth and the quality of graduates produced by the universities.
According to ASUU, the delay has already begun to affect morale among academic staff in the three Lagos State-owned universities.
Nassir warned that if the situation is allowed to continue, it could lead to institutional instability, declining academic standards, staff apathy, ethical drift, reduced graduate quality and disruption of academic calendars.
“Where staff begins to feel despondent, as is now the case at LASU, LASUSTECH and LASUED, management of the system becomes problematic and this triggers institutional decline,” he said.
He added that such decline could manifest in “staff apathy, ethical drift, reduced graduate quality and eventually disruption in academic calendar.”
ASUU said it had engaged the Lagos State Government on the need to implement the 2025 agreement but lamented that no concrete action had been taken.
The union said the agreement was not merely about salaries but about the stability, welfare and future of the university system.
It warned that continued delay would undermine the state’s investment in higher education and weaken the institutions expected to drive innovation, manpower development and research.
The union also expressed concern over unresolved internal disputes at LASU and LASUED.
It cited the dismissal of ASUU officials at LASU and the alleged victimisation of its branch chairperson at LASUED as issues that have further worsened labour relations within the state-owned university system.
ASUU said the state government must urgently address the welfare concerns and internal disputes in the institutions before the situation degenerates into a full-blown crisis.
The union maintained that it should not be blamed if academic activities are disrupted in the three universities.
“Government, not ASUU, should be held responsible if all universities belonging to Lagos State are thrown into avoidable crises or totally shut down on account of poor response of the Government to the concerns of our members,” Nassir declared.
The warning comes amid growing pressure on federal and state governments to implement the 2025 FGN-ASUU Agreement, which was reached after years of renegotiation of the 2009 agreement.
The agreement, which took effect from January 1, 2026, contains welfare and institutional reform provisions aimed at improving the working conditions of academic staff and strengthening public universities.
ASUU has repeatedly insisted that the implementation of the agreement is necessary to prevent fresh industrial unrest in the university system.
The latest warning from the Lagos Zone follows similar threats by ASUU branches in other parts of the country, where lecturers have accused state governments of failing to comply with the agreement.
ASUU Lagos Zone urged Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to urgently intervene by directing the relevant government officials to conclude discussions with ASUU branches in LASU, LASUED and LASUSTECH.
The union said immediate implementation of the 2025 agreement would help avert what it described as a brewing unrest across Lagos State-owned universities.
It added that the state government still has an opportunity to prevent disruption by engaging the union sincerely and addressing the welfare concerns of academic staff.
ASUU warned that failure to act promptly could force its members in the affected institutions to take lawful industrial steps to protect their interests.
