The 2006 Nigeria Census
Figures……
that has been officially released by
President Obasanjo led PDP government should be consigned to a dustbin, should
be thrashed, for that is where that charade, a monumental waste of taxpayers
funds belongs. It is like everything President Obasanjo: a complete disaster.
The late Hon Chuba Okadigbo described President Obasanjo as a ‘Curse to
Nigeria’. I thought his views were a bit extreme then but now I concur with him.
The good people of the South West Geopolitical zone knew the man Obasanjo very
well and have refused to acknowledge him as a Nigerian President of Yoruba
extraction. The man indeed is a mercenary, a soldier of fortune with no
constituency. He has, but only hatred for Nigeria. All he knows is his personal
agenda, his selfishness. Otherwise, how can he champion this disaster of a
census outcome.
A revisit of the
census figures posits that Nigeria’s population is 140 million, geographically
spread thus: -
- North West – 35,786,944
- North Central – 20,266, 257
- North East – 18,971.965
Giving the total
Northern Nigeria a population of 75,025,166
- South West – 27,581,992
- South South – 21,014, 655
- South East – 16,381,729
Giving the total
Southern Nigeria a population of 64,978,376
There is nowhere
in the world that population increases Desert-wise except Nigeria but then no
country in the world is like Nigeria. Nigeria I hail thee.
Nigeria is bordered in the Northeast by The Republic of Chad. Chad has
a total land area of 1.28 Million Square Kilometres and a population of
9.1 Million. From the North Central stretching to Northwest, Nigeria is
bordered by The Republic of Niger. The Republic of Niger has a land area
of 1.27 Million Square Kilometres and a population of 12.9 Million. Nigeria
itself has a total land area of 923,768 Square Kilometres (Sources: www.cia.gov.cia.publications.factbook;
http:/news.bbc.co.uk/ world/Africa). The desert countries of Chad and Niger
Republics each with land masses greater than Nigeria have populations of 9.1
Million and 12.9 Million people respectively and Nigerian Population Commission
(NPC) is telling Nigerians that Northern Nigeria with far less land mass than
Chad and Niger have a population of 75 Million People. Chad, Niger and Northern
Nigeria share the same topography and economy. This is what President Obasanjo
in his high heavens want Nigerians to accept.
A further
breakdown of this nonsense of a census figure again posits that Kano State has a
population of 9.3 Million people (More than Republic of Chad) whilst Lagos state
has a population of 9 Million people i.e. Kano State is more populated than
Lagos State. Even a blind Nigerian knows that this does not add up.
This charade of
a census figure goes on to say that the combined population of Anambra and Imo
State (8 Million People) is less than that of Kano State alone. What arrant
nonsense. The National Population Commission in further making idiots of itself
put the population of Anambra State at 4.1 Million People and that of Imo State
at 3.9 Million thereby indicating that Anambra State is more populated than Imo
State. Any one who knows the demography of Southeast Nigeria is well aware that
Imo State is the most populous state in that area.
The mentally
retarded NPC went on to put the population of Kaduna State (6 Million) and
Katsina State (5.7 Million) above Oyo State (5.5 Million). For the uninitiated,
Oyo State with Ibadan as its capital is the heartbeat of Yoruba land. Any
scholar of Nigerian affairs should be au fair with the population of Ibadan. I
was, way back in the 70’s, in primary school.
The census was based on domicile rather than state of origin, which
is understandable for planning purposes. The most contributing factor regarding
domicile is economic opportunity: People migrate where there are better economic
avenues for them. The economic opportunities in Nigeria reside solidly in the
south. Pre-independence when agriculture played a major role in Nigerian
economy, the North had economic leverage to some extent but Post-independence
and with total dependence on crude oil, petro-dollars, the South have a total
dominance on Nigerian economy, so domicile, economic migration in current day
Nigeria is South bound. This amongst the other factor earlier stated entails
that Southern Nigeria should be far more populated than Northern Nigeria but
President Obasanjo for reasons best known to him and NPC are telling Nigerians
otherwise. What an insult on our collective intelligence.
To
scientifically scrutinise the census data, NPC can in no possible way enumerate
the population of Nigeria, It has not got the knowledge know-how, it has not got
the expertise, it has not got the experience, it has not got the dedication, it
has not got the funds, it has got nothing to enumerate 987 Thousand Sq Km, over
2000 towns and villages, deserts, several islands, jungle forests, erosion
devastated communities, ethnic militants policed areas, etc. Where and who
trained NPC staff on data analysis? When and how was NPC staff recruited? For a
nation that cannot refine crude oil, Biafra with all its handicaps, could. For a
country that cannot run an airline. For a country that has no electricity. For a
country that has no accredited university. For a country that has no water
supply. For a country with dilapidated infrastructure. For a country that
exports its best brains. For a nation with all these handicaps to come out and
categorically state that it has got what it takes to collate data on its diverse
citizenry is the talk of the century. For the avoidance of doubt, Nigeria’s
economy is totally dependent on crude oil but Nigeria does not know how many
barrels it produces or sells, otherwise, why is the country continuously
operating on budget deficits despite pegging the price of crude oil at sixty
percent market rate for budget purposes.
In accepting the
lunatic census figures presented by the equally lunatic NPC, President Obasanjo
was quoted as saying “While our administration takes cognizance of the fact that
no human enterprise is imbued with absolute flawlessness or perfection, we
applaud the National Population Commission for its strict adherence to the
principles of scientific objectivity and integrity, rigorous commitment to the
critical essence of the credibility and integrity of the process; and a proper
appreciation of the profundity of the national assignment with which they were
entrusted, and which they discharged creditably well.” Creditably well indeed.
This is a President Obasanjo led government that has failed Nigerians woefully
in every facet. The man Obasanjo is a clown, God save us.
The essence of a census exercise is to provide Government with
demographic data for planning purposes. To plan for education, to plan for
healthcare, to plan for job creation, to plan for rural-urban migration, to plan
for pensioners, to plan for infrastructural development, to plan for posterity.
But when a census exercise is reduced to nothingness, how can a government plan?
How can a government move the citizenry forward? How can Nigeria move forward if
we are told that Kano State is more populated than Lagos State, that you have
more people in Katsina than Ibadan, that Imo State that have more JAMB
candidates than the whole of the Northern States put together is a fraction of
Kano state, population-wise, that Abuja and Bayelsa State have almost the same
population, that there are better economic opportunities in Zamfara State than
Ondo State. President Obasanjo and his NPC cohorts, please leave Nigeria
alone.
President
Obasanjo personally has benefited more from Nigeria with minimal cerebral input
than any other Nigerian, as he approaches his twilight years, it will be
honourable for him, to give back, a little, to Nigeria from all he has taken.
On a lighter side, bad news do breed good
tidings depending on how one looks at it. Kano State with a population of 9.3
Million people have circa 46 Local Government Councils with its attendant
economic benefits, whilst Lagos State with a population of 9 Million people is
disadvantaged with 22 Local Government Councils. Perhaps this census exercise
will address this imbalance for Lagos State
Chidi
Anyaeche Mr. B.Sc. (Hons), M.Sc. (London), M.Sc. (Cranfield)
Email. Chidi_Anyaeche@hotmail.com
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