A data solution outfit, otherwise known as Dataphyte, has flayed the Federal Government over the National Population Commission’s N50 million earmarked for solar installation in preparation for the conduct of the 2022 census.
This was contained in a newsletter titled ‘Contrived Budget Figures, 2022 Census, 2023 Consensus and other Counted Lies’.
In the newsletter, Dataphyte queried the total budget of the commission, which is at N189.51 billion, adding that it is the 14th highest allocation among 44 like Federal Ministries, Departments, and Parastatals in the 2022 MDAs budget.
Recall that the census is coming 16 years after the controversial 2006 census and 60 years after the conflicted 1962 census.
Dataphyte stated, “Another interesting item on the 2022 Budget that caused a tug of war between the Executive and the Legislative arm of government is the allocation for a demographic and household census during the year.
“Due to the forthcoming 2022 Census, which is to be conducted by the National Population Commission, the Commission was given a budgetary allocation of N189.51 billion, the 14th highest allocation among 44 like Federal Ministries, Departments, and Parastatals in the 2022 MDAs budget.”
The organization questioned the impact of solar on the soon-to-be-conducted headcount, stressing that the choice of the constituencies in Taraba was worrisome.
“Dataphyte is currently investigating, among other issues in the 2022 budget, how the provision of solar lighting across a select federal constituency became the responsibility of the National Population Commission.
“Dataphyte’s accountability desk seeks to know further what interest the NPC management has in that federal constituency, and how this possible conflict of interest could alter NPC’s census count of the people and building facilities in Bali Gassol Federal Constituency of Taraba State,” the organization added.
The research and data analytics organization said the gaps in the Commission’s budget question its preparedness for the headcount, amidst the insecurity, witnessed in many zones.
“Besides this strange 50 million worth project found as a line item in the National Population Commission’s budget, the Senate also chided the Commission for possible inflation.
“These holes in the budget seriously question the readiness of this NPC leadership to give us something better than the discounted truths and counted lies of the past Censuses,” Dataphyte added.
