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APC reacts
A claim by a lecturer at Abia State University, Uturu (ABSU), that tricycle operators, popularly known as keke riders, earn more than professors in the university has landed him in trouble.
The All Progressives Congress (APC), Abia State chapter, reacting to the professor’s suspension, described it as the height of intolerance by a government that claims to uphold the tenets of democracy.
Professor Nnamdi Nwaeze of the Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics and Management Sciences of the university, is reported to have alleged on Facebook that some professors at the institution are earning less than N400,000 monthly.
Elaborating, Nwaeze reportedly claimed that the cumulative earnings of some keke riders are higher than what professors receive at Abia State University.
Piqued by the post, the management of ABSU suspended the lecturer with immediate effect, saying the social media posts made by Professor Nwaeze were inimical to the interests of the institution.
According to the statement suspending the professor, a panel has been set up to investigate the issue, which the institution’s authorities see as embarrassing.
Meanwhile, the APC in Abia has reacted to the suspension of Professor Nwaeze, describing it as the height of intolerance by a government that claims to uphold the tenets of democracy.
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A statement by Eric Ikwuagwu, the state assistant publicity secretary of the party, titled “Professor Nnamdi Nwaeze is the hero of Abia democracy”, said that even in the darkest days of Nigeria’s history, many lecturers stood up against military rule and authoritarianism.
According to Ikwuagwu, “It is on record that the 1994 ASUU strike was majorly against military dictatorship for the annulment of June 12, 1993, presidential election.
“During the military regime, academics and other intellectuals openly participated in Nigeria’s broader pro-democracy struggles. ASUU was a major part of the resistance against military authoritarianism, and even the maximum ruler, General Sani Abacha, tolerated it.”
The statement said it is worrisome that in 2026, an ABSU lecturer was suspended for making a revelation the management viewed as “uncomplimentary remarks” about the institution.
“The ‘uncomplimentary remarks’ were simply speaking up against the continued use of the 2009 salary structure to pay them in 2026, while using the 2025 deductions to slash their salaries. He also stated that professors like him are paid less than N400,000 monthly.”
The statement added that if Professor Nwaeze was suspended for lying, nobody would have raised an eyebrow, but suspending him for merely speaking up and factually too smacked of callousness.
