The Academic Staff Union of Universities at the University of Port Harcourt has declared an indefinite strike following the university administration’s failure to address salary and allowance grievances affecting its members.
ASUU Secretary at UNIPORT, Tarila Amakoromo, confirmed the strike in a statement on Thursday, saying the action became unavoidable after the administration missed a 48-hour deadline that elapsed at midnight on September 15 without any resolution.
The union’s grievances centre on three issues. First, incomplete payment of salaries for June, July, and August 2026. Second, incomplete payment of responsibility allowances to lecturers. Third, the non-payment of responsibility allowances to ASUU members under the CONMESS and CONHESS salary scales, while members of other unions at the same institution have been receiving the same payments consistently for more than two years.
At an emergency congress on September 11, the union gave the university administration until midnight on September 15 to act or face an indefinite local strike backed by ASUU’s national body. The administration met with the union the same day and promised to respond before the deadline. It did not.
A second emergency congress held on September 16 formalised the strike declaration. A monitoring team has been constituted to ensure compliance across the university’s main campus and all affiliated centres.
