This was made clear by CONUA in a statement it released on Tuesday, in which it expressed unhappiness with the FG for delaying payment of its members' salaries and emphasised that the government was fully aware that its members had neither called for nor taken part in the aforementioned strike.
The statement, which was signed by the union's president, Dr. Niyi Sunmonu, national secretary, Dr. Henri Oripeloye, and national publicity secretary, Dr. Ernest Nwoke, noted that the federal government's failure to release the withheld salaries along with November salaries, despite repeated letters and actions reminding the labour minister and accountant general that the union's members did not participate in the strike, was in violation of the expectations of its members.
As a union that takes pride in doing things differently, the CONUA claimed that the government's move breaches labour law and that taking the government to court was its next course of action.
"The Congress of University Academics (CONUA) has expressed disappointment with the Federal Government, especially the Ministry of Labour and Employment, over the non-payment of its members' withheld salaries even when the government knew that the union did not call for strike action and its members were not involved in the strike action that lasted for eight months and which shut down the university system nationwide," the statement reads in part.
Remember that the FG has since withheld university instructors' pay in order to prevent them from going on strike, which began on February 14 and continued until October 14, 2022. For the months of October and November, the FG paid half of the salary due.
The ASUU and FG's main point of contention has continued to be the arrears from February to October.