Fact Check: Has Tinubu Fixed Date for National Census?

• The date of the proposed national census in the country has remained a subject heated debate in some quarters.
• The census was earlier scheduled for May 3-7, but the authorities said more time was needed to plan for it
• Recent claims that President Bola Tinubu has ordered the National Population Commission to conduct the census in November 2023 are false

FCT, Abuja - Claims have surfaced on social media that President Bola Tinubu has ordered the National Population Commission (NPC) to conduct a census in November 2023.

The viral claim also said NPC staff were ready for the exercise and that training would be provided.

The last census in Nigeria was conducted in 2006. The proposed census would the country's first in 17 years.

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Tinubu hasn't set date for census

The text on Facebook reads in full:

“The president bola Ahmad tinubu, has directed the national population commission to conduct the national population and housing census in November 2023.

The national population commission has announced this during the meetings with their respective states chairmen, in their communique the commission has also assured that all the adhoc-staffs that would participate in the exercises are on ground, and there will be a refresher training for the trainers i.e state level facilitators on the new modules. and the LGAs training for enumerators and supervisors will be conducted at the end of October this year.”

The claim was also shared here and here.

But is the message genuine?

On Wednesday, August 23, 2023, the NPC quashed the claim.

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The disclaimer reads:

“The Commission wishes to inform the public that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has not fixed a date for the conduct of the upcoming Population and Housing Census in Nigeria.

“Kindly note that when there is a date for the census, it will be announced in the national media and on the NPC social media platforms and website."

Tinubu to decide new date for census

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Tinubu administration would decide the date for the 2023 national census.

The national census had initially been slated for Wednesday, May 3 to Sunday, May 7 but was cancelled on Friday, April 28 for a later date.

Sani reacts to postponement of census

Legit.ng also reported that a former lawmaker, Shehu Sani, speculated the reason the federal government postponed the 2023 national census.

Sani, in a tweet shared on his Twitter page, claimed that FG passed the buck to Tinubu, because it could not fund the census, estimated to cost about $1.8 billion.

Source: Legit.ng