THE MUSLIM community in Ghana has been urged to participate fully in the upcoming 2021 National Population and Housing Census which is slated to commence on June 27.
At a forum organised by the Light Foundation, a non-governmental organisation, officials from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) educated and sensitised participants comprising of religious heads of various Islamic groupings and associations on the importance of the exercise.
Dr. Hajia Nasiba Tahir, trainer in this year’s census and resource person at the event, educated participants on the fundamentals of the exercise and demystified some controversies surrounding same.
In her submission, Dr. Tahir established that contrary to popular opinion, the census exercise is not politically motivated to provide any political advantage for any political party.
Being an independent body, the GSS, she explained, is mandated to carry out the exercise once in ten years regardless of which party is in power.
On who qualifies to be counted, Dr. Tahir intimated that the census exercise is for both Ghanaians and non Ghanaians, saying, “any person alive on the night of June 27 qualifies to be counted.”
She iterated that going by the definition of Ghana’s constitution, a Ghanaian is anyone born in Ghana; who has one of their parents being a Ghanaian; or any child brought to Ghana before attaining the age of six years; and therefore implored all Muslims who find themselves in the country by June 27 and fall within any of these categories to endeavour to get themselves counted.
Spokesperson for the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Aremeyaw Shaibu noted that the office of the Chief Imam had learnt of a council for this year’s National Population and Housing Census on which the Muslim community isn’t represented.
According to him, results of previous censuses with respect to the population of Muslims in the country have been “very controvertible” and they did not hide their reservation about it.
In response, Dr. Haruna Zagoon, Executive Director of Baraka Policy Institute said, “We want people to have confidence in the data that would be brought,” and implored the office of the Chief Imam to “petition” the GSS with respect to the representation of the Muslim community on the council, saying, “It is not too late.”
National Chief Imam, Sheikh Usman Nuhu Sharubutu added his voice to the call for all Muslims nationwide to participate in the exercise, saying, “We will not get progress, be elevated or be recognised if we do not participate in the exercise.”
By Nii Adjei Mensahfio