The Joint Unions of Nasarawa State Tertiary Institutions have suspended their about one-month-old industrial action, directing members to resume classes with immediate effect.
JUNSTI, with lecturers from the state-owned Isa Mustapha Agwai I Polytechnic, Lafia, College of Agriculture, Science and Technology, Lafia, and College of Education, Akwanga, had on December 24, 2025, declared an indefinite strike over the non-implementation of the New National Minimum Wage in the tertiary institutions.
The Chairman of the union, Samson Kale Gbande, said the state government could not meet up with the agreements reached after several meetings and negotiations, hence the association embarked on the strike action.
Also, the Nasarawa State Government, through the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Abdullahi Sule on Public Affairs, Peter Ahemba, had on January 2, appealed to JUNSTI to sheathe their swords in order to ensure further dialogue with the government.
During a recent meeting convened by heads of the institutions with JUNSTI, Rector of the Isa Mustapha Agwai I Polytechnic, Lafia, Associate Prof. Nurudeen Mu’azu Maifata informed the striking unions of the efforts being made by the state government to address the lecturers’ demands.
He urged them to stay calm, to dialogue with the government and to end the industrial action in order to ensure that students are not deprived of learning because of the strike.
Meanwhile, speaking during a press briefing on Wednesday at the Isa Mustapha Agwai I Polytechnic, Lafia, the Chairman of JUNSTI, Samson Kale Gbande, announced the immediate suspension of the strike, directing all members to return to their duty posts “immediately and unconditionally”.
“We appreciate Governor Abdullahi Sule for ensuring an efficient implementation of the New National Minimum Wage across the three state-owned institutions. We commend his approach to bettering workers’ living conditions.
“The payment of the New National Minimum Wage for the months of November and December has already begun,” he added.
Gbande further lauded the determination of the entire JUNSTI members throughout the period of the struggle.
