Speaker Lawan
The Speaker of the Borno State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Abdulkareem Lawan, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for postponing the National Population and Housing Census scheduled for May 2023.
Lawan said the postponement was a relief to Borno where many people displaced by the insurgency, particularly in Borno North were not fully resettled.
Speaking to journalists in Maiduguri, Lawan said that majority of peope from the 10 local government areas in Northern Borno, especially Guzamala, Abadam, Kukawa, Marte and Mobbar were still displaced, adding that many are taking refuge in neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroun Republic.
The speaker noted that conducting the 2023 census would under such condition would amount to infringement on the human rights of many displaced persons and victims of insurgency in the region as well as deprived many Nigerians who had been displaced from their ancestral homes from being counted.
“Honestly, I commend President Muhammadu Buhari for postponing the National Population and Housing Census scheduled for May 2023.
“Conducting the exercise now is not only il-timed or injustice, but would amount to infringement on our human rights as many displaced persons and victims of Boko Haram sect in the region could be deprived..
“The President’s decision is a welcome development, even as i urge the military and other security agencies who are fighting Boko Haram/ISWAP to intensify their efforts to restore civil authority in Guzamala Council Headquarters and other communities that are still ghost-town for many years.
“This is neccessary to enable all the displaced persons return back to their ancestral homes and pick up their pieces,” the Speaker added.
