Spread the word As Nigeria approaches the pivotal 2027 general elections, expected to redefine civic trust, political legitimacy and national direction, the country confronts a danger no serious democracy should tolerate for two decades: a political system operating on outdated demographic realities, governing today’s citizens with yesterday’s numbers. Nigeria’s last official census was conducted in 2006. Since then, governance, planning and electoral architecture have relied on stale estimates and speculative projections rather than an updated democratic snapshot. This has profound political, economic and social consequences. At the heart of Nigeria’s democratic order lies the principle of equal representation, enshrined in Section 14 of the constitution, which affirms that sovereignty...