Nigeria’s Unity College Staff Oppose Privatization, Suspend Resumption Despite Govt Orders.

Staff of Nigeria’s Federal Unity Colleges have defied the Federal Government’s directive to resume academic activities, insisting that their ongoing indefinite strike over the concession of King’s College, Lagos, remains in force. The staff, under the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN), rejected the government’s September 18 memo that ordered schools to reopen, maintaining that their protest would continue until their demands are fully addressed.

The dispute centers around the planned concession of King’s College, a historic 117-year-old institution, to its Old Boys’ Association under a public-private partnership arrangement. The government had initially announced a suspension of the takeover process for two weeks, following a meeting with education unions and labor leaders in Abuja, which resulted in a five-point agreement. This agreement stipulated that unions would suspend industrial actions, police deployed to the school premises would withdraw, and a committee would be formed to review the concession plan.

However, ASCSN and other unions have accused the Ministry of Education of breaching the agreement. They claim the government has continued to negotiate with bodies not recognized as representatives of the unions. At King’s College, Lagos, union officials confirmed that staff have not resumed classes, and students remain at home, communicating to parents that the school remains closed due to the ongoing strike.

Sam Enang, chairman of the ASCSN chapter at King’s College, told Punch that the strike is still active. “We have not resumed,” he asserted, adding that police presence and the confrontation between security personnel and staff had worsened the situation. Enang also alleged that police damaged school gates during the confrontation and that police deployment was part of the reason staff are maintaining their strike.

The union’s stance is echoed by other Unity Colleges across Nigeria. Ayo Hundeyin, chair of the ASCSN at the Federal Government College in Ijanikin, Lagos, confirmed that no school has resumed, citing concerns over ongoing plans to privatize or hand over other Unity Colleges in Kano, Port Harcourt, and Ilorin. The union leaders fear that privatization could undermine the quality of education and threaten their jobs.

The government, led by Education Minister Tunji Alausa, insists that King’s College has not been sold or privatized and that the arrangement is an isolated case. Alausa emphasized that the government remains committed to directly funding the rehabilitation of Unity Colleges and exploring alternative funding options for infrastructure development.

The ongoing strike highlights the deep tension between government plans for school concessions and the staff’s resistance, which is rooted in concerns over privatization, job security, and the future of Nigeria’s historic institutions. The dispute remains unresolved as staff continue their indefinite strike, and students across the affected schools stay at home.