Abstract This paper aims to unveil the peculiar nature of poverty that characterize the academic staff of Nigerian public universities, resulting from organization leadership lacuna at the top. The study relied on secondary sources of data obtained from the Nigeria's Public service rules, universities terms and conditions of service, journals and internet materials. Thus, the university organization leadership role in terms of adhering to the execution of extant rules, terms and conditions of service that pertain to the rights, entitlements, welfare and motivation of staff and the overall effects on the morales of public universities academic staff forms the basis of argument and analysis of this paper. Findings revealed that public universities' leadership failure has perpetually subjected public universities lecturers, including Professors to begging, borrowing, low morale and general job dissatisfaction while in service, at retirement and old age. Keywords: Academic staff, Contextualization, Organization Leadership, Public Universities, Working Poor.