NPC Chairman Nasir Isa Kwarra announced that the National Population Commission has implemented measures to prevent all forms of malpractice ahead of the upcoming population and housing census. The commission emphasized that citizens residing outside their states of origin need not travel home for the exercise; they will be enumerated at their current places of residence.
In an interview with our correspondent on Monday, commission spokesperson Isiaka Yahaya explained, “People should stay where they are to be counted. They should not move to their states of origin, as that defeats the purpose of the census. You must be counted where you reside because that is where you benefit from social facilities such as education and health. If people relocate after the census, planners will lack accurate figures for infrastructure and other services.”
Regarding safeguards against malpractice, Yahaya added, “This is a de‑facto census. We are asking practical questions about those who are living, not about those who are yet to be born. Our enumerators have not been trained to count unborn individuals, and we have a system in place to guard against the malpractices we have anticipated.” He further clarified that enumeration will occur only at individuals’ homes to discourage post‑census movement: “You can be counted in only one place, leaving no room for deception. When enumerators visit your house, they will see what you report; we are not asking for the owner’s details, so there is no reason for anyone to lie.”
Yahaya noted that the commission has not yet completed the recruitment process for enumerators.
Comments are closed for this story.