Former senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, has revealed why President Muhammadu Buhari approved the postponement of the 2023 Population and Housing Census, earlier scheduled for May 3-7 2023.
OsunDaily News earlier reported that Buhari in a press statement signed by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, on Saturday, officially approved the census postponement.
Mohammed revealed that Buhari gave the approval after meeting with some members of the Federal Executive Council and the Chairman of the National Population Commission, Nasir Isa-Kwarra, and his team at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Friday.
According to the minister, President Buhari approved that a new date would be determined by the incoming administration.
However, Shehu Sani in a post via Twitter on Saturday said the federal government passed the buck to the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, because it could not fund the census, which is estimated to cost about $1.8 billion.
He wrote, “The simple fact is that the FG doesn’t have $1.8 billion for the Census and now shifted the Wahala to Asiwaju.”
Keep $800 Million Borrowed From World Bank Safe
Meanwhile, Senator Shehu Sani has asked the federal government to keep safe the $800 million it received earlier as a loan from the World Bank to cushion the effect of the planned fuel subsidy removal.
For months now, the Nigerian government has maintained it will remove subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to broaden its revenue.
The planned petrol subsidy removal was scheduled to commence in June 2023. The government, however, announced on Thursday, April 27 that the plan is now suspended.
Speaking on the development shortly after the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting yesterday, which comprises State Governors, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, said after extensive deliberation on the issue, a conclusion was reached that it will not be wise to remove subsidy as soon as the new administration is trying to settle down to governance.
Reacting to the development, Senator Sani in a post on his Twitter page said: “Now that Subsidy will not be removed, please that $800 million borrowed from the World Bank for the purpose should be kept safe, abeg.
“We don’t want to hear that consultants have been paid with half of the money.”
