By Uche Amunike
The Methodist Church of Nigeria, Diocese of Calabar, has recommended, during its 47th annual Synod at the Wesley Cathedral, Calabar, that the national population and housing Census 2023 which was billed to kick off in May, be suspended because of the insecurity presently bedeviling the country.
This disclosure was made known in a communique signed by the Methodist Archbishop of Calabar, Most Rev. Chimezuo Nwankpa with the Lay President, Dame Prof. Miranda Dosunmu (KJW), as well as Elder Offing Unoh, who is the Chairman of the Communique Committee of the Synod, themed ‘Contending for the Faith, in Consideration of the Prevalent Moral Decadence and Heresy in Our Society’.
In the 9-point communique, the Synod called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to consider the fact that there was still a high level of insecurity in the country, as some areas were still being occupied by Boko Haramists, bandits and other undesirable elements who unleash mayhem and terrorize helpless inhabitants. This, they said would make it impossible for Census workers to assess such troubled areas.
They moved that the nationwide population Census 2023 should be put on hold, pending when the security will improve.
They further decried the high unemployment rate in the country and advised the unemployed youths to acquire skills so as to be able to earn a dignified source of livelihood and escape poverty and frustration.
They further pointed out the economic situation in the country, saying that majority of Nigerian citizens live on the breadline and thereby called on President Muhammadu Buhari to do all he could to revive the failing economy.
They also expressed their sympathy for the victims of ongoing wars in different parts of the world and prayed that God would intervene, to end the wars, while calling on the federal government to evacuate its citizens from such war-torn zones.
They also made a call to every aggrieved politician who took part in the just concluded general election in Nigeria to seek redress in the law courts instead of resorting to unlawful means.
Meanwhile,the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, has announced the postponement of the continuation of its Direct Entry registration that was scheduled to close on Thursday 20th April 2023, but however extended by an extra week.
According to a statement signed by the board’s Spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin, the exercise will now continue on Saturday 6th May, when the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and the National Census 2023 exercise would have ended.
His statement partly read: ‘This development is to accommodate the conduct of the Board’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, billed to start on Tuesday, 25th April, 2023, and end on Wednesday, 3rd May, 2023, while the National Census is scheduled to start on Wednesday, 3rd May, 2023, and end on Friday, 5th May, 2023.’
It further read: ‘Candidates desiring to register for the DE exercise are, therefore, directed to ensure that they obtain their DE ePINs from designated vending outlets on or before 30th April, 2023, when ePIN vending would be closed. Candidates are then expected to proceed to the Board’s offices from Saturday, 6th April, 2023, to Saturday, 13th May, 2023, to complete their registration procedure.’
He assured every candidate that desired to be a part of the direct entry registration that they would all be given the opportunity to carry out their registration, provided that they complied with the board’s directives within the stipulated time frame.
