The National Population Commission (NPC), has noted that the census questionnaire has no column for religion and ethnicity.
The commission made the clarification on Friday in Kano when the National Publicity Committee on the 2023 Population and Housing Census paid an advocacy visit to Nigerian Television Authority, Kano.
Yahaya, who is also the commission’s Director of Public Affairs, maintained that issues of religion and ethnicity being peddled on social media were mere distractions and without foundation.
”Since 1991, when the National Population Commission, NPC, has been conducting census, we have never asked questions on ethnicity and religion.
”We didn’t do it in 1991, we didn’t do it in 2006 and we won’t do it now.
”The reason is obvious. The two issues are very sensitive and have the capacity to divert attention from the main issue of the census,” he said.