Concerned over the prolonged industrial action that has disrupted academic activities and left many uncertain about their return to campus, students of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State, took to the streets to demand an end to the strike.
The protest followed a 68-day strike by lecturers and the subsequent commencement of industrial action by other university-based unions, including Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) and the National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT).
Students took their protest to the university’s main gate and adjoining roads linking the institution to the major highway in Akungba-Akoko on Thursday, displaying placards and demanding an end to the crisis.
Speaking with journalists, the Students’ Union Government President, Folagbade Ayoola, said students were compelled to protest by the uncertainty created by the prolonged disruption of academic activities.
Ayoola said government needed to intervene immediately, alleging that issues including unpaid lecturers’ salaries and inadequate funding had contributed to the crisis. He vowed that students would continue to use legitimate means to press for a resolution.
The union’s General Secretary, Oluwatimileyin Amos, said the disruption was particularly affecting final-year students whose examinations were approaching, leaving many unsure whether to remain at home or return to campus.
“This is the 68th day of the strike and, as time goes on, we might be here for nine months. Students are in dilemma and confusion; they do not even know what to do anymore,” Amos said.
The Students’ Senate President, Adebiyi Kehinde, said the union had engaged university management and other stakeholders over the crisis, urging government to take decisive steps to resolve the dispute.
A 500-level student, Ogungbade James, also appealed for the payment of outstanding obligations to facilitate students’ return to campus.
Academic and administrative activities have also been disrupted at other state-owned universities in Ondo following an indefinite strike by non-teaching staff.
The strike, which affects Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology, Okitipupa, and the University of Medical Sciences, Ondo, followed the expiration of a 14-day ultimatum issued to the Ondo State Government by the Joint Action Committee of Ondo State-Owned Tertiary Institutions (JAC-ODSTI).
According to the unions, the strike followed government’s failure to meet their demands, including implementation of the Federal Government-unions agreement from January 2026 and payment of Consolidated Tertiary Institutions and other allowances contained in the agreement.
They also faulted government for failing to increase institutional subventions by 60 per cent, as previously announced.
The unions maintained that the strike would continue indefinitely until their grievances were addressed.