The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, has called upon the newly inaugurated commissioners of the National Population Commission to ensure that the upcoming census provides accurate statistics of the nation’s population.
He emphasized that reliable data on the population is crucial for economic planning and the equitable distribution of infrastructure across the country.
Representing Bende Federal Constituency, Abia State, Kalu expressed dismay over the continued use of varying population figures, stressing the need for a definitive change in this narrative.
In a statement released by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Levinus Nwabughiogu, Kalu delivered this charge during the inaugural dinner for the federal commissioner representing Abia State on the NPC Board, Emmanuel Eke, held on Saturday in Abuja.
Eke was among the 17 appointees inaugurated by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, earlier in the week.
Kalu stated, “We don’t know our number in Nigeria. We cannot keep claiming we are the giant of Africa when we don’t have an accurate statistic of our actual number as a nation. It’s embarrassing! Each time they ask you of your population, you said about…When are we going to drop this ‘about,’ that descriptive thing to our number?
“You people should make it exact. When we call Ogun State, you tell us the number. We call Abia, you tell us. Total number in the South East, you give us. Total number in the South West, North West, South South, etc, you give us so that we can plan because economic planning without actual knowledge of the population is a waste of time. When you plan for a few, the infrastructure will be overused by the much you did not capture.
