2023 Census: Court Decides Whether to Order NPC Account for N200bn April 16

Alex Enumah in Abuja

Justice Inyang Ekwo of a Federal High Court, Abuja, will on April 16, decide if to compel the National Population Commission (NPC) or not to give account on how it spent N200 billion out of the funds allocated to it for the conduct of the suspended 2023 National Census.

The court fixed date for judgment after the adoption of final written address
A lawyer, Victor Opatola, had  accused the NPC of refusing to provide detailed information on how it spent the sum of N200 on preparations for the postponed 2023 Population and Housing Census.

When the matter was called yesterday before Justice Inyang Ekwo, the judge called on counsel to identify and adopt all the processes they filed in the matter.
Opatola, who represented himself as plaintiff, told the court that all processes had been filed and exchanged with the defendant.
“The plaintiff filed an originating summons along with a 12 paragraph affidavit and I also filed a reply on points of law and I seek to adopt them,” he said.
The counsel to the NPC, Mr C.D Chimezie also identified and adopted all his processes.

At the end of their adoption, the judge stated that judgment in the suit would be delivered on April 16, this year.
The NPC Executive Chairman, Nasir Kwarra, in May 2023, had disclosed that the commission spent N200 billion for preparation, out of the expected N800 billion needed to conduct the census.

But, Opatola told the court that he had filed a Freedom of Information (FOI) application to the commission, on March 2023, requesting information on the budget submitted by the commission for the 2023 Census as well as the amount so far received by the commission towards the conduct of the 2023 census.

The plaintiff, who claimed that the said application addressed to the NPC was duly acknowledged and served on the commission through its chairman, lamented that the NPC declined to do the needful in line with relevant laws.