5,000 academics to endorse Tinubu’s re-election bid in November

No fewer than 5,000 professors and senior academics from more than 130 tertiary institutions are expected to converge on Eagle Square, Abuja, in November to endorse President Bola Tinubu for a second term in office.

The planned endorsement is being organised by Progressives in Academics (Pro-Acad), led by its convener, Prof. Bolarinwa Bolaji, as part of efforts to mobilise support for the continuation of the Tinubu administration beyond 2027.

Bolaji disclosed this on Monday at a pre-declaration briefing in Abuja, where he said the academic community had recorded significant improvements under the current administration, particularly in staff welfare, institutional autonomy and reforms aimed at revitalising the education sector.

He said successive administrations had failed to adequately address poor remuneration, infrastructural decay and policy inconsistencies in the university system, but claimed that the Tinubu government had introduced measures that were improving conditions for academic staff.

“For decades, the Nigerian academic system suffered poor remuneration, infrastructural decay and policy inconsistency. Under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, that narrative has changed. Salaries and welfare of academic staff have recorded steady growth, with over 100 per cent increase compared to the past, restoring dignity, motivation and productivity,” he said.

Among the administration’s achievements, Bolaji listed the removal of tertiary institutions from the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS), settlement of outstanding earned allowances, operationalisation of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) and increased funding for the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).

He said NELFUND had benefited more than 500,000 students, adding that the government’s interventions had restored confidence among academics.

“President Tinubu has returned autonomy and respect to the Ivory Tower. This is why progressive academics have resolved to speak with one voice. Eagle Square Declaration is our political contribution to ensure the Renewed Hope Agenda is not truncated, but consolidated beyond 2027,” Bolaji added.

He disclosed that the official document to be presented at the planned gathering would be titled Academic Declaration for Continuity and Renewed Hope 2027.

According to him, the document will contain the group’s assessment of the Tinubu administration, its achievements in the education sector and a resolution endorsing continuity beyond 2027.

Bolaji said mobilisation was ongoing across universities, polytechnics and colleges of education, describing the proposed gathering as potentially the largest assembly of academics for a political cause in Nigeria’s democratic history.