President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the plan from the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, to resolve some of the lingering issues between the Federal Government and university teachers in the country.
Specifically, the Minister’s proposal to clear the long-overdue Earned Academic Allowances (EAA) owed to academic and non-academic staff of federal universities has received the nod of the President and the disbursement has since commenced, fulfilling a promise made by the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration.
In the first disbursement, N50B has now been paid to the universities and lecturers have started receiving their allowances.
The payment, which comes after almost twenty years of agitation and unmet promises, is being widely celebrated as a turning point in government-labour relations in Nigeria’s tertiary education system.
Speaking in a statement widely circulated among academia and stakeholders, Professor Yemi Oke, a respected academic from the Faculty of Law at the University of Lagos, commended the Tinubu administration for keeping a promise many believed would never be fulfilled.
“The real issue here is not the quantum or the sum,” he said. “It is the thoughtfulness, sincerity, and integrity of fulfilling a promise that was not even made by him, but which he took personal responsibility to settle.”
Recall that the Federal Government’s intervention was first announced by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, on April 23, 2025. He revealed that ₦50 billion had been released to settle EAA owed to university staff, describing the move as “a reaffirmation of President Tinubu’s belief in the capacity of Nigerian youth and the invaluable role that academic and non-academic staff play in nurturing them.”
Dr. Alausa emphasized that the intervention goes beyond financial disbursement, describing it as “a reaffirmation of our President’s belief in the capacity of Nigerian youth and the invaluable role that academic and non-academic staff play in nurturing them.”
He added that prioritizing the welfare of university staff was essential in building a future where Nigerian students receive quality and globally competitive education.
In a now widely circulated statement, Prof Oke praised President Tinubu for his sincerity and courage, stating that while the President did not incur the debt, he made a commitment to clear it and has now fulfilled that promise.
“The real issue here is not the quantum or the sum,” Prof. Oke wrote, “but the thoughtfulness and the fact that President Bola Tinubu… made a promise to pay. Let Nigerians know that the promise has been kept, most conscionably.”
In the same vein, Prof. Oke noted that previous governments had overlooked the EAA issue, even with university professors serving as vice presidents and ministers.
“Prior to the Tinubu era,” he said, “the humongous debts of EAA remained unpaid and unattended to until President Bola Tinubu deemed it fit and decent enough to pay off the embarrassing debt.”
Prof. Oke called on the President to further consolidate these gains by reviewing and enhancing the salary structure of university lecturers, noting that no Nigerian professor currently earns up to $500 a month.
He also stressed the crucial role university staff play not only in education but also in national development, including their contribution to the electoral process as returning officers and the training of professionals who serve in health, aviation, and engineering sectors.
“President Tinubu has already won the hearts of millions of Nigerian students, their parents, and university staff with the combined effects of the payment of the Earned Academic Allowances and the Student Loan scheme,” Prof. Oke wrote. “All that needs to be done is for P-BAT to complete the job of capturing the minds of these crucial constituencies ahead of the 2027 general elections.”
“For those who love to read “politics” into every steps or actions, this will be a fair and good politics if Nigerian University teachers have a reviewed and enhanced salary since 2009 under President Bola Tinubu”.
“As a constituency, we know what to do to “payback” as university staff, and through our greatest Nigerian students and their proud parents with our votes and our continued service to humanity and our fatherland, NIGERIA. God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria, he concluded.
Education analysts have described the move as a breath of fresh air in a sector that has long been plagued by neglect and broken promises.
The payment of EAA comes alongside other reforms under President Tinubu’s leadership, including the implementation of a student loan scheme that has so far benefited thousands of Nigerian students.
