From Ene Asuquo, CalabarThe seven-day warning strike jointly embarked by Non Academic Staff of Nigeria Universities (NASU) and their counterpart, Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities (SSANU) yesterday crippled activities of many universities across the country, leaving students stranded.It was observed that the main gate of the University of Calabar was locked up by the striking workers.Members of NASU Unical branch joined the strike to press demand for the payment of four months arrears of their salaries.The non-academic staff early Monday morning locked the main entrance of the university barring academic staff and students from entering the institution for scheduled examinations and other activities.Some students said they were in their scheduled halls to take the first semester examinations when NASU members stormed the place and chased students away.Daily Asset gathered that a task force set up by NASU to monitor the strike went from one office to office as well as examination hall to ensure total compliance with the action.According to a source, the President of Unical Students Union Government, Comrade Godsgift Kichi-Akwo confronted the task force and queried their right to harass students or disrupt examinations but he was allegedly beaten up by the staff.Piqued by the alleged attack on their president, some students carrying placards stormed the office of the Vice Chancellor, Professor Florence Banku Obi to register their displeasure.Briefing Obi, the SUG president demanded an apology from NASU and told the VC that another member of his exco was also attacked and wounded by the striking workers.The Vice Chancellor directed that the wounded students and the SUG officials be taken to the institution’s medical centre for treatment.Obi who appealed to the students to remain calm and peaceful was intimated that some striking workers were also attacked and wounded by students.In a telephone chat, NASU Chairman, Comrade Victoria Orok alleged that the students attacked the NASU Secretariat on campus and destroyed everything.Orok accused the VC of sending the students to attack and destroy the secretariat.She disclosed that five members of the union were attacked by the students and they were receiving treatment in the institution’s medical centre.  UniAbujaThe situation was not different at the University of Abuja (UniAbuja) as academic activities were temporarily disrupted.The protesting workers blocked the entrance to the university, preventing students and others from going inside.SSANU Branch Chairman Nureden Yusuf, while addressing newsmen said the strike was to protest their four months withheld salaries.According to Yusuf, the unions were on strike to draw the attention of the government to the state of the universities.“You may recall that one of the contentious issues why we went on strike in 2022 was that of the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement.“That agreement ought to be renegotiated every three years and now we are in 2024, that is fourteen years after the last agreement, it is yet to be renegotiated.“Also, we are talking about withheld salaries which President Bola Tinubu in Oct,. 2023 gracefully agreed should be paid to us.“Our counterparts in the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) had been paid their four months salaries, but we are yet to receive our salaries.“NASU and SSANU are unions of professionals. We oil the wheel of the university system,” he said.According to Yusuf, apart from teaching, there were other activities carried out by SSANU and NASU members in the university system.Yusuf said that the unions would be shutting down all essential services including security units, healthcare services, water supply, transportation unit, electricity.Also, Chairperson of NASU, University of Abuja, branch, Sadiya Hassan said that it was imperative that the Federal Government paid the four months withheld salaries to the unions.According to her, it was discriminatory and unacceptable for NASU and SSANU to be left out in the payment of the four months withheld salaries.“We are professionals in our different fields that we chose to be in the non-teaching sector,” she said.Hassan urged the Federal Government to do the needful for the workers to return to their duty posts.UNN, EnuguAcademic activities were partially paralysed at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) and the Enugu campus following. The strike affected some ongoing examinations at both campuses of the university.Students who were taking examinations earlier were allowed to finish while those who started their afternoon papers were chased out of the classrooms.The striking members also closed many offices including Students Affairs and others.Some of the students lamented the negative effects of the strike in their studies.A 400 level student of the Faculty of Environmental Studies, Ijeoma Edeh said the strike, if allowed to go on, would affect her seriously.“Please, the government should pay them, otherwise a prolonged strike will spell doom for some of us,” Edeh said.Another 400 student of Architecture, Favour Obichili appealed to the Federal Government to resolve their grievances and meet demands.SSANU and NASU said the warning strike called by their national Joint Action Committee (JAC) was to protest the Federal Government’s failure to pay their members four months withheld salaries during their strike in 2022.Addressing members during an emergency congress in the UNN, Dr. Linus Akata, Chairman of SSANU-UNN flanked by Comrade Ekene Amu, Chairman of NASU-UNN said the emergency congress was to tell their members about the warning strike declared by JAC.Akata said that the strike would be total and comprehensive in UNN, in total adherence and compliance to the directive of the national leadership.He said that all the administrative offices and essentials service sections of the university were already under lock and key,The union leader warned that the unions would deal decisively with any member found defaulting or sabotaging the seven day warning strike.“Members are directed to go home immediately after this congress and stay away from work until the seven-day warning strike ends, as any defaulting member will be decisively dealt with.“This warning strike is total and comprehensive as the administrative block of the UNN, offices, works department, University Medical Centre, University Primary School and among others have been shut down till the end of the strike.“There will be no water and electricity supply from the university hostels, also internet facilities from the university have been shut down for the period as we have directed our members working in these places to go home,” he said.Akata said that the unions had no apology over the seven-day warning strike as their national leadership had done everything necessary to avert the strike by appealing to the government to do the needful.“SSANU and NASU have written so many letters to the government, held several press conferences, led delegations to government officials in a bid to resolve the issue but all to no avail.“So, at the end of this warning strike, if the government did not meet our demand we will also take a directive from our national body on the next line of action,” he said.Akata urged members to go home and relax till the end of the strike but should report any threat or query for not coming to work from management, head of department or faculty to the union. Zaria, Yola VarsitiesThe industrial grounded academic activities at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.Theatres, lecture halls, libraries and laboratories were under lock and key at Samaru and Kongo campuses of the university.Power supply and internet services had been off as many slated computer based tests were cancelled at the university.Chairman of SSANU, ABU Chapter, Mohammed Yunusa said the union complied with industrial action in the university.He said that workers at the Works, Registry and Student Affairs and Bursary Departments had downed tools, adding that it achieved 90 percent compliance.The chairman said that members of the union would hold a peaceful protest and a press conference on Tuesday.“We are the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities; we are the custodians of the university’s rules, we are law abiding citizens and we know what it takes to have a peaceful warning strike.“We have gotten to a point where we cannot sit and watch things as these events are unfolding now. The university system is being run with contributions from all major stakeholders.“Therefore, it is very unfair for the federal government to say one stakeholder is more important than the other,” he said.Similarly, the strike paralysed academic activities at the Modibbo Adama University (MAU), Yola.Michael Omokoro said the shutdown would affect water supply, electricity, internet and all other services rendered by members of the association.“Basically it is about our four months withheld salaries, the 35 per cent wage increment, the N35,000 palliative that stopped in January, the reconstitution of Governing Councils, etc.“During the seven days, there will be no light, water supply, clinic, ICT and all other services because we have withdrawn our members,” Omokoro said. NLC calls for Immediate PaymentIn its reaction, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called for the immediate payment of the withheld salaries of NASU and SSANU members.NLC President Joe Ajaero urged the Federal Government to pay the four months outstanding salaries to avoid drift in the academic sector.In a statement issued in Abuja on Monday, the NLC President said at a time confidence was being restored to the public universities, the worst thing the government could do is to engineer another strike.While ASUU was paid the withheld salaries in full, NASU and SSANU were allegedly denied the full payment.Ajaero said, “There has been no credible reason or explanation for withholding those salaries in the first place.“We recall this singular act plunged the members into indescribable hardship.“Much worse, it defies logic to try to subject members of these unions to discriminatory treatment.“By doing so, the government is clearly courting avoidable industrial disputes,” he said.The NLC President stressed that the effects of the strike on the parties would be unacceptably high, especially for students and parents.He, therefore, urged the government to expeditiously pay up the outstandings salaries“We advise the government not to take for granted the maturity of these unions,” he said.