‘You can’t run effective government without timely census’

Dr Rabi’u Shehu is a seasoned bureaucrat and administrator who served Kano State in different capacities. He was at a time the Head of Service in Kano State. In this interview, he talks about issues relating to working without accurate population census, among others.

How important is a national population census to national development?

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Census is important in governance for resources or services to reach the populace. It is very important for the government to have accurate data on beneficiaries of any particular services it wants to render, or any policy it wants to enact for the citizens.

Unfortunately, things are going the way they are simply because there is no up-to-date data on the nation’s population. It is equally very vital to note that absence of or poor credible data on a nation or state’s demographic information, particularly with regards to population, negatively affects the polity. You will agree with me that it is difficult for services to reach the nooks and crannies of the country based on population projection.

Moreover, the national population census has always been a sensitive and controversial issue because of its implications for shaping geopolitical, state and ethnic relations as well as the quest for balance of power.

What do you suggest should been done?

From the look of things, I strongly think that there is the need for us to have a very credible and reliable population census because depending on projection would not help us as expected. By credible population census, I mean a census devoid of politics and personal sentiments. There’s no doubt that many people have their contention on the previous censuses, particularly those last national population census, as many Nigerians have the impression that not all have been captured or some parts of the country deliberately increased their numbers.

What are the negative impacts of not carrying out national population census as and when due?

Non-conduct of the act has an inherent socio-ethnic consciousness and the battle for political dominance among Nigerian geopolitical regions have continued to defeat the main aim of national population census as an instrument for strategic planning and sustainable development. The lack of accurate census figures may have contributed to Nigeria’s policy summersault and underdevelopment.

It is unfortunate that in this 21st Century, Nigeria still does not have effective and reliable census data. Thus, when a nation does not know the proportion and the total number of its citizens, its planning process is likely to be distorted. These have affected every sector of the nation’s administration at all levels and indeed it has been dragging the nation backward.

Are there things the National Population Commission should have done in that regard?

It is interesting to note that the National Population Commission, before any census, is supposed to delineate areas, which they call elimination areas, but there is fear because of the insecurity challenges currently being experienced. A lot of shanty towns and locations have emerged. Moreover, some places are also termed as hard to reach areas. However, all these places in the country should be covered by devising some forms of technologies that will ensure that they are all captured.

It is a duty of the commission to also ensure that all places and the people living there are captured. For instance, if you go to areas like Tudun maliki in Kano here or beyond Tudun maliki, you will find small pockets of population all over the place. One would wonder whether places like these have been captured during the census excessively or whether when population census is taking place, these areas are accessed at all.

How would you rate governance without an updated population census?

It is very important to have accurate data for services to reach all areas that need to be covered. So, in a nutshell, you can’t run an effective government without a timely census.