By ANIEFIOK UDONQUAK, Uyo –
Union leaders at the Akwa Ibom State University (AKSU) compromising of academic and non-teaching staff members have rejected a staggered payment plan for the salaries and allowances owed them by the management.
The workers have been on strike over the non payment of the arrears of minimum wage from November 24 , May and June salaries.
The unions are insisted that all “our entitlements being, arrears of new minimum wage from November 2024 to date, May 2025 and June 2025 salaries” must be paid at once to them.
They made their position known in a bulletin issued after a meeting with the University management.
According to the bulletin, “at the meeting, we were informed that efforts were ongoing towards ensuring that June 2025 salary would be paid on or before Wednesday 9th July, 2025.
“We were further told that, May 2025 salary and the arrears of the new minimum wage from November 2024 to date* would be paid alongside July, 2025 salary at the end of the month.”
We also reiterated our earlier stance as contained in our letter to the management that “We therefore will not be able to fund our way to and from work if by Wednesday 9th July, 2025, May and June 2025 salaries; and all the arrears of the new minimum wage are not paid.”*
Noting that their position has been communicated to the Vice Chancellor, the unions called on everyone “to note above information and be guided accordingly.”
In an interview, the Commissioner for Information, Aniekan Umanah, attributed the salary delay to the recent verification undertaken by the state government .
He confirmed that allowances were discovered which he said led to the declaration of 3000 vacancies by the state.
He said the workers would be paid at the conclusion of the verification exercise.
