Kalu Charges NPC With Obtaining Correct Population Data For Appropriate Economic Scheduling
The newly appointed commissioners on the National demographic Commission (NPC) Board have been tasked by Hon. Benjamin Kalu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, with making sure that the upcoming census will provide precise demographic data for Nigeria.
According to him, understanding this number is crucial for both economic planning and the nationwide deployment of infrastructure.
The Deputy Speaker emphasized that it was time to permanently alter the narrative and that it was improper to keep speculating on the population of the nation whenever the matter came up.
According to a statement released to Ndiigbo Worldwide by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Levinus Nwabughiogu, Kalu delivered the speech at the weekend in Abuja at the inaugural banquet of Chief Emmanuel Trump Eke, the federal commissioner representing Abia State at the NPC Board.
Recall that on Wednesday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu inaugurated 17 new appointees, including Eke.
“The charge to you people as commissioners, to be honest, we don’t know our number in Nigeria,” Kalu added in his rebuke. When we lack precise data regarding the size of our actual population, we cannot continue to assert that we are the behemoth of Africa.
It’s awkward. Every time they inquired about your demographic, you responded with…When are we going to stop describing our number with this “about”? You folks need to be more precise.
“You tell us the number to call Ogun State.” You tell us to call Abia. You give us the total number in the South East.
You provide us with information in the South West, North West, South South, etc. so that we can plan. Economic planning without accurate demographic data is pointless since you may prepare for a small number of people and the infrastructure will be abused by others you did not account for.
Therefore, the foundation of our economic planning is understanding our people and demographics so that the population will drive project allocation decisions.
As a courtesy to this country, you must conduct the census. Strive for success and ensure that Nigerians are happy to respond, “Yes, we are N250 million, but by the time you finish, we might be N300 million.” This is because we projected that we will become, I believe, the fourth most populous nation in the coming years, and every country in the world is looking to Nigeria for investment because they know there is a market there.
