A group of former government officials has issued a formal call for the government to guarantee the confidentiality of data collected during the upcoming Census. The officials expressed concern that public trust in the census process has been eroded by fears that the collected information could be linked to the National Population Register (NPR) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

According to the former officials, the census is a purely statistical exercise intended to provide a demographic snapshot of the country. They argue that if citizens perceive the census as a tool for surveillance or a precursor to citizenship verification processes like the NRC, participation rates may drop significantly. This, they warn, would undermine the accuracy of the data, which is vital for government planning, resource allocation, and policy development.

The officials emphasized that the Census Act provides legal protections for the privacy of respondents. They are urging the government to issue clear, public assurances that the information provided by citizens will remain confidential and will not be shared with other agencies for non-statistical purposes. While the government has not yet issued a formal response to these specific demands, the debate highlights the ongoing tension between administrative data collection and public concerns regarding privacy and citizenship documentation.