Insecurity Won’t Stop Elections, NSA Monguno Vows

The National Security Adviser, Major Gen Babagana Monguno (rtd), has assured that the 2023 census would be conducted safely despite security challenges in the country.

Speaking during the inauguration of the security and logistic committee for the census yesterday in Abuja, Monguno said potential threats to the exercise would manifest in physical attacks on staff and facilities, attacks on security personnel on census duty, inter/intra-communal violence, among others.

“Most prominent is the issue of insecurity arising from banditry, kidnapping, armed conflicts, terrorism, insurgency and other violent crimes which pose a major challenge to the census exercise,” he said.

He, however, said the government has made serious efforts to make the country safe for everyone.

The Chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC), Isa Kwarra, said the commission was working to give Nigerian credible, reliable and acceptable census data for national planning.

“Nigeria has vast land mass with pockets of hard-to-reach areas. With the structure and facilities of members, organisation, I am confident that the committee has all it takes to mitigate the security and logistic challenges of the 2023 census,” he said.