…says criticism is unwarranted
The Presidency has pushed back against criticisms trailing the composition of the recently constituted high-level committee tasked with developing a report on the upcoming national population and housing census.
Dada Olusegun, special assistant to the president on social media, described the reactions from some media quarters as “laughable and ill-informed.”
In a post on his verified X (formerly Twitter) handle, @DOlusegun, on Thursday, he stressed that the members of the committee were carefully selected based on the relevance of their current roles to the success of the census.
“The outcry by some sections of the media on the committee formed by President Tinubu to create a report on the proposed National Census is entirely laughable and ill-informed,” Olusegun wrote.
He noted that except for the Principal Secretary to the President, who is representing President Bola Tinubu, all other members hold strategic positions directly linked to the agenda of the national census and are, therefore, indispensable to the task.
“It will be abominable to form any such committee without them,” he added.
The committee is chaired by Senator Atiku Bagudu, the Minister of Budget and National Planning.
Other members include Mallam Nasir Isa Kwarra, Chairman of the National Population Commission, who serves as Secretary; Muhammad Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation; Engr Abisoye Odusote, Director General of the National Identity Management Commission; Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy; Zacch Adedeji, Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service; Hakim Muri-Okunola, Principal Secretary to the President; and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Administration and Operations (Office of the Chief of Staff).
Olusegun questioned the basis of the criticism, asking: “Who among these people, whose current offices are crucial to the success of any National Census to be conducted, should be removed?”
He also downplayed concerns about the committee’s size and inclusivity, arguing that the task before the group is narrowly defined and time-bound.
“The task is just for three weeks and all the president requires is a report on how to combine finances, with our existing database alongside communications model to ensure the success of the much-needed census exercise,” he explained.
Olusegun urged Nigerians to place trust in the administration’s judgment and not be distracted by what he described as “unwarranted premonitions.”
“We are about to have the best population census of our lifetime and no distractions should be encouraged,” he declared.
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