A PRAGMATIC ANALYSIS OF THE ACADEMIC STAFF UNION OF UNIVERSITIES (ASUU) PRESIDENT’S SPEECH AT THE SIGNING OF THE 2025 FEDERAL GOVERNMENT–ASUU 2025 AGREEMENT

Abstract

Language does more than communicate information; it performs actions, negotiates relationships, and shapes institutional realities. This study examines the pragmatic features of the speech delivered by the President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Chris Piwuna, during the signing and presentation of the 2025 Federal Government–ASUU Renegotiated Agreement. The study adopts a qualitative descriptive research design and uses the full speech text published by The Guardian (Nigeria) as its primary data source. The study adopts a qualitative pragmatic approach base on Speech Act Theory (Austin, 1962; Searle, 1969), Grice's Cooperative Principle, and Brown and Levinson's Politeness Theory (1987). These frameworks are employed to identify and interpret the speech acts, conversational implicatures, presuppositions, and politeness strategies embedded in the address. Findings reveal that assertive speech acts dominate the speech, enabling the speaker to present an authoritative account of ASUU–government relations, challenges facing Nigerian universities, and the need for educational reform. Expressive acts convey gratitude and concern, while commissive acts reflect cautious optimism regarding the implementation of the agreement. The analysis also uncovers implicatures relating to government unreliability, institutional accountability, and the conditional nature of ASUU's cooperation. Positive politeness strategies promote solidarity and goodwill, whereas negative politeness strategies facilitate criticism without overt confrontation. The study concludes that pragmatic devices in the speech serve both communicative and institutional functions by shaping perceptions, managing relationships, and reinforcing ASUU's identity. It contributes to Nigerian pragmatic scholarship by extending research beyond political speeches to the relatively underexplored domain of labour-union institutional discourse.