Joel Bendera

Morogoro regional commissioner Joel Bendera has called for identification of people refusing to participate in the National Housing and Population Census slated for August 26 this year.

The move follows reports that some people in the region are opposing against the census exercise openly, with some of them placing placards on their houses reading, ‘We’re not ready to be counted’.

Bendera was briefing journalists at a special meeting aimed to mobilise resources ready for the housing and population census during the last week of this month. Though, he didn’t state why those expressing reservation about the exercise should be identified.

The RC said there were several challenges facing the region with regards to the census exercise, including those refusing to participate in it for different reasons including religious, which however, he didn’t mention.

Bendera said that he had already met with different religious leaders to rally their support in sensitising and mobilising their faithful to participate in the exercise.

He elaborated that the exercise was not meant to hurt any religion, only that it sought statistics that would help the government plan people’s development better.

For his part, Morogoro Press Club (Moro PC) chairperson Aziz Msuya told the regional commissioner that in order to make the exercise successful it was important to form a sub-committee of journalists who would run special media campaign.

He said that Moro PC was ready to cooperate with the government in mobilising and promoting the exercise, expressing optimism that if that is done properly, the event will be a great success.