The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has suspended its ongoing two-week warning strike after a crucial overnight meeting of its National Executive Council (NEC) in Abuja.

National President of the union, Prof. Chris Piwuna, announced the suspension during a press briefing on Wednesday, explaining that the decision came after “useful engagements” with representatives of the Federal Government.

According to Piwuna, the NEC meeting, which began on Tuesday and ended around 4:00 a.m. Wednesday, reviewed the outcome of discussions held with government officials on the lingering issues that triggered the strike.

> “We’ve had useful engagements with representatives of the government to consider the response to the draft renegotiation of the 2009 agreement,” he said.
“However, we are definitely not where we were prior to the commencement of the strike.”

The ASUU leader noted that the government had shown some willingness to return to the negotiation table, prompting the union to review its industrial action.

> “While noting that a lot more work is still required, NEC came to the conclusion that the ongoing strike should be reviewed. The decision to review the strike action was a result of efforts by our students, parents, and the Nigeria Labour Congress,” Piwuna added.

He said the suspension was meant to reciprocate the appeals of well-meaning Nigerians who had intervened in the crisis.

ASUU had declared a total and comprehensive warning strike on October 13, over what it described as the government’s persistent failure to implement agreements and address key welfare and funding concerns in public universities.

The union’s demands include the conclusion of the renegotiated 2009 FGN-ASUU agreement, release of withheld three-and-a-half months’ salaries, revitalisation funding for public universities, and an end to the victimisation of lecturers in Lagos State University, Prince Abubakar Audu University, and the Federal University of Technology, Owerri.

Other demands are the payment of outstanding 25–35% salary arrears, promotion arrears of over four years, and the release of withheld third-party deductions such as cooperative contributions and union dues.

Though the warning strike has been suspended, the union emphasized that it remains “vigilant” and expects government to act in good faith within the window provided by the gesture.

The House of Representatives has resolved to intervene in the ongoing dispute between members of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the Dangote Refinery, a face-off that recently disrupted petroleum product distribution nationwide.

The decision followed the consideration and adoption of a motion of urgent public importance co-sponsored by Alhassan Doguwa (Kano) and Abdussamad Dasuki (Sokoto) during Tuesday’s plenary session.

Titled “We Need to Protect Private Investment from Adversarial Unionism,” the motion drew attention to the significance of the $20 billion Dangote Refinery, described as the largest private petroleum refinery in Africa.

The lawmakers expressed concern that the industrial action, which began on September 29, 2025, had halted operations at the refinery and caused a nationwide disruption in petroleum supply. Nigeria reportedly lost about 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day over three days, deepening scarcity and forcing long queues at filling stations across several states.

Leading debate on the motion, Doguwa stressed the need to protect strategic private investments such as the Dangote Refinery, which, he said, holds enormous potential for energy security, job creation, foreign-exchange savings, and reduced dependence on fuel imports.

“The House is aware that the Dangote Refinery is a strategic private investment of immense national importance, with the potential to guarantee energy security, reduce import dependency, generate employment, and conserve foreign exchange,” Doguwa said.

He noted that the refinery operates within a Free Trade Zone and is therefore subject to the legal framework of the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA).

“Section 18(5) of the NEPZA Act clearly states that employment in the free zone shall be governed by rules and regulations made by the Authority and not subject to any other enactments relating to employment matters,” he added.

The House, he continued, is “concerned that labour actions disregarding the legal protections conferred on Free Zones under the NEPZA Act not only breach the law but create a hostile investment climate capable of deterring future local and foreign investors.”

The lawmakers warned that if key private ventures continued to face “unlawful disruptions by adversarial unionism,” the country risked losing both strategic assets and investor confidence critical to economic growth.

During deliberation, Ahmad Jaha (Chibok/Damboa/Gwoza) urged caution, describing the call for an immediate probe as “ill-timed.”

Following debate, the House adopted the motion and mandated its leadership to broker peace between the parties in the interest of national stability.

It also urged the Ministries of Labour and Employment, Industry, Trade and Investment, and Justice to “jointly develop and implement a national framework or set of policies to safeguard private investments of strategic national importance from adversarial and unlawful union actions.”

Additionally, the Ministry of Justice and NEPZA were directed to ensure “full enforcement and compliance with Section 18(5) of the NEPZA Act” across all relevant Free Zone operations.

The lawmakers said the intervention was necessary to balance workers’ rights with the protection of vital private enterprises that underpin Nigeria’s energy and industrial sectors.

A 36-year-old Nigerian woman living in the United States, Gbemisola Akayinode, has been arrested and charged with murder after her 9-year-old daughter, Oluwasikemi Akayinode, died after being left in a hot vehicle for over eight hours.

Authorities from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office in Texas said the child’s death was ruled a homicide as a result of hyperthermia (heat stroke).

Court documents indicate that on July 1 2025 the girl was left in a car while Akayinode reported to work at a manufacturing plant in Galena Park near Houston. The day’s temperature was reportedly around 99 °F.

In her statement to police, Akayinode said that when she arrived at her job at about 5:45 a.m., she left her daughter with food, water, a rechargeable fan, and ice cubes in the back seat. She lowered the car’s rear windows halfway, she said. She reportedly administered melatonin to her daughter who began to fall asleep. She claimed she did not check on her daughter again until her shift ended at about 1:53 p.m., at which point she discovered the child unresponsive and blue.

Investigators say that although Akayinode claimed she did not have money for daycare, documents show her job foreman had been paying for day-care services for her daughter.

Akayinode faces a murder charge under Texas law. The sheriff’s office said the case had moved forward after the coroner ruled the child’s death a homicide due to prolonged heat exposure in a vehicle.

Child-safety organisations note that dozens of children nationwide die each year after being left in vehicles on hot days. According to one such group, more than 1,160 children have died in hot cars in the U.S. since 1990.

Akayinode is set to appear in court in Houston in the coming days. Authorities say they will present evidence relating to the timeline of events, the condition of the vehicle, and the mother’s actions during the critical period.