The Chairman, Northern Governors Forum and Governor of Niger State, Babangida Aliyu, has warned Nigerians against politicisation of the census saying that previous head counts failed to achieve the desired results because of the way it was handled.
Nigerians preferred to see census as a means of getting higher returns from the national purse instead of seeing it as a way to effectively plan the development of the country.
Aliyu gave the warning in Minna on Wednesday when he received the report of the National Population Commission at the Government House presented by the National Commissioner, Aliyu Datti.
He said, “We need to know the population distribution of the country, which will help in proper planning.”
He advised his colleagues and the local government chairmen in the northern part of the country as well as other stakeholders to commence immediate preparation for the 2016 national census, in order to make a success of the exercise.
The governor said timely preparation for the census was essential, though the Federal Government was yet to indicate its desire to conduct the exercise.
He said, “We don’t want the North to be caught unawares whenever the announcement is eventually made.”
Aliyu noted that because of the landscape covered by the region and its huge population, it was necessary that adequate arrangements and timely preparation be made to ensure that virtually everybody is counted during the head count.
He said, “I want to use this opportunity to call on all the Northern governors to give the National Population Commission the needed support for the 2016 census to be successful.” Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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Because of our ignorance, our insincerity, and the ignorance of our leaders, Nigeria always inflates population figures. Every part of the country does it, making census activity in Nigeria a wasted effort, just like most other things in the country. Instead of wasting billions on this futile exercise, they should multiply the current estimate by two, and everyone will be happy. Ignorance is indeed a disease. .
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