A former military administrator of Kaduna and chairman, Movement for Unity and Progress, Col. Abubakar Dangiwa Umar, has described the proposed national census as waste of scarce national resources.
Consequently, he has advised President Muhammadu Buhari to shelve the idea, saying the focus should be on how to tackle insecurity.
Prompt News Online reports that President Buhari had on Thursday presented to and got approval of the Council of State to conduct national census in April 2023.
But Col. Umar differs, saying the approval “to conduct National census in April 2023 must have come as a great shock to most well-meaning Nigerians.”
He states further: “A country that is facing existential challenges such as unprecedented level of insecurity, collapsing economy cannot have as one of its priorities the conduct of a National census.
“We therefore urge the Buhari administration to suspend what will amount to misadventure and waste of scarce national resources.
“This Administration should focus all its attention on securing the nation and conducting the 2023elections.
“A National census at this point is certainly not a priority assuming that its conduct is possible.”
