By Our Reporter
ABUJA (PRECISE POST) – Former Presidential Aide and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Sen. Ita Enang has called on the Federal Government to drag the Academic Staff Union of University (ASUU) to court for contempt of court for demanding payment of unpaid salaries among other demands
Enang, who made this known in an interview on Wednesday in Abuja, said the demand was in contravention of a court order obtained in 2023, which stated that the union was not entitled to salaries while on strike.
Recalled that ASUU had proceeded on strike on Oct. 13, 2025 to press home some of its demands on agreement reached with the federal government with regard to staff welfare including funding and autonomy of the Universities.
Enang said: “They are going on strike to compel federal government to disobey court order.
“If you want to go on strike, you have to agree that under the law, which is existing, which governs you that you have to forfeit your salaries for the period.
“In the US and in the UK, there is a Strike Fund, the money that the union pays members from during strike because at such periods they are not entitled to salaries from their employers.
“My advice to ASUU is to call off the strike and go back to work while they continue with negotiations with the Federal Government.
“The middle ground is for the federal government and for ASUU to know that the same responsibility that the federal government owes to it as a trade union and employees is the same responsibility that the federal government owes to the students.
“The innocent students whose academic calendar and academic life has been truncated and prejudiced.
“So, the academic staff union should know that those who want to go on strike should be prepared to lose their salary according to law and they should read the judgment, particularly paragraph two in that judgment because in that judgment one of the things we claimed in that judgment was that the period that the workers were on strike should not be counted.
According to Enang, all the issues raised by ASUU have been passionately addressed by the Ministry of Education and the federal government, wondering what ASUU was looking for in ordering fresh strike, insisting that the strike constitute contempt of Court.
The former lawmaker made reference to the relevant sections of the International Lanbour Organisation, which supported the lack of salaries for workers who embarked on strike, insisting that the “no work, no pay” directive of the Federal Government was in tandem with domestic and international Labour Laws.
He said, paying striking workers amount to contempt of Court by the Federal Government, stressing that the Federal Government must not be seen to be in contempt of Court like the striking ASUU.
Enang argued: “The question we asked the court to determine on page two of the judgment was to interpret the provisions of section 43 of the Trade Dispute Act, Capt. 8, Laws of the Federation, titled Special Provisions with Respect to Payment of Wages During Strikes and Lockouts, specifically dealing with the rights of employers and employees and workers during the period of any strike or lockout.
“Can ASUU or any union that embarked on strike be asking to be paid salaries, even with the clear provisions of the law?
“And to determine whether ASU members are entitled to emolument or strike pay during their period of current strike. The judgment was in Federal Government’s favour.
“Ihave listened to the statement by Dr. Alausa, the Honourable Minister of Education, saying that the Vice-Chancellor should not pay the salaries and that they should honour the policy of no pay, no work, no pay.
“I want to urge the Honourable Minister that he doesn’t need to do, but should rather charge ASUU for contempt of Court”, he maintained.
