This type of responses is useless. The process is far from being flawless, so anyone is entitled to criticize it. Let people vent. If you don’t like it, then don’t read it.What's the urgency of getting citizenship? You are not under heavy restriction similar to when you applied for PR (changing jobs, moving out of province, going on vacation, your permit expiring). It is a much more straight forward process. You can travel freely. With a Nexus, you clear customs faster than the average Canadian without Nexus.
All applications are different and they're being processed by people not machines. Therein lies the variations. They told you 12 months average, that's consistent enough. Enough with the complaints and bickering. Give them some credits.