The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Nigeria’s foremost union representing academic personnel in public universities, has ushered in new leadership with the election of Professor Chris Piwuna as its national president. The development was confirmed following the conclusion of the union’s 23rd National Delegates Congress, which was held on Sunday in Benin City, the Edo State capital.
Prof. Piwuna, a consultant psychiatrist and senior academic at the University of Jos Teaching Hospital, currently serves as the Dean of Student Affairs at the University of Jos. He succeeds Prof. Victor Emmanuel Osodeke, a Professor of Soil Science at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, in Abia State, whose tenure has now come to an end after a period marked by intense negotiations with the Federal Government over university funding and welfare issues.
Sources close to the internal proceedings of the union confirmed that Prof. Piwuna emerged victorious after contesting the position against Prof. Adamu Babayo of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi. His election comes at a delicate time, as tensions simmer within the academic sector over the implementation of Earned Academic Allowances, which the Federal Government recently released but which have sparked debate among members on equitable disbursement.
Furthermore, the union continues to grapple with long-standing concerns such as the mass exodus of academic talent—commonly referred to as brain drain—as well as unresolved matters related to infrastructure decay, poor funding, and autonomy within the Nigerian university system. These lingering issues have raised the spectre of a possible industrial dispute, though no formal decision has been announced.
Prof. Piwuna, known within academic circles for his firm stance on academic justice and university reform, is expected to bring renewed focus and negotiation strategy as ASUU continues its engagement with federal authorities. His emergence marks a new chapter in the union’s leadership at a time when the future of Nigeria’s tertiary education system remains a major topic of national discourse.
