2021 census: Avail yourselves and be counted – Ashanti Regional Minister to residents

The Ashanti Regional Security Council says it has put adequate measures in place to avert any possible violent incidents during the 2021 Population and Housing Census.

The Council says though it does not envisage any untoward incidents in the exercise, it is working towards a smooth census.

Some residents in the Ahafo Ano North District, last week, declined access to enumerators to list their structures as part of the exercise.

The Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, who heads the security council in the region, is thus appealing to residents to cooperate with the enumerators.

“We are enumerating everybody in the census, whether a citizen of Ghana or a foreigner. This census doesn’t mean foreigners are not going to be counted. Anybody who is in the country during the census period is going to be counted. Census regulations are different from election regulations.”

“These are different LIs that are covering it, so the rules governing the organisation of an election are different from those governing the population and housing census. So we are pleading with everyone to avail him or herself to be counted. If we have an infrastructure in any community, it will not distinguish the use of it whether you are a citizen or not”, the Regional Minister urged.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Statistical Service says the first phase of the exercise has been successful despite few incidents recorded in parts of the region.

Ashanti Regional Statistician, Dr. Kobina Abakah Ansah who spoke to Citi News says the concerns by some inhabitants in the Ahafo Ano North District have been resolved.

“The issue has been resolved. Yesterday, the assemblyman even called and thanked me for the explanation I have given him that initially, they thought they were doing something that was going to harm the exercise but after the education, he realised it was something that was going to affect them negatively. I have spoken to all the locals to avail themselves for the exercise which they have done, and we are done with the listing. We are just hoping that next Monday the actual household population enumeration will continue in that locality”.

Dr. Abakah further explained that, “we are using almost 13, 000 census officials, and we have only one person who has in a way suffered some form of misfortune; that is the man who was locked up. If all the rest have been able to carry out this assignment successfully, then in terms of percentage, I will say we are about 99.7 successful.”

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