The National Orientation Agency (NOA), has issued a directive to all Community Orientation and Mobilization Officers in the 774 Local Governments to commit the newly signed National Anthem to memory by Monday, June 3, 2024.
This directive, given by the Director General Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, is part of the Agency’s efforts to ensure a seamless transition to the new National Anthem which is part of the national identity project being pursued to promote national cohesion, unity and a sense of patriotism.
Issa-Onilu, in a statement by the agency Deputy Director of Press, Mr. Paul Odenyi, said that the Community Orientation and Mobilisation Officers (COMOS) are the Agency’s lead Officers in the local governments whose roles are primarily to enlighten citizens at the grassroots level of government policies, programmes and activities.
The NOA is also working closely with the National Union of Teachers (NUT) to ensure that schools across the country are mobilised to start using the current National Anthem.
“We are excited to embark on this new chapter in our national history,” said DG, NOA. “We believe that this new National Anthem will inspire a sense of pride and unity among Nigerians, and we are committed to ensuring that every citizen has access to it.”
Recall that President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday assented to the bill that reverted Nigerians to the use of ‘Nigeria we hail thee’ its former national anthem.
The NOA DG in the circular urged all Community Officers to take this directive seriously and to make every effort to learn the new National Anthem by the specified deadline ” as you would be the grassroots marshals for the implementation of this new policy of government”
NOA as the custodian of the nation’s symbols has the mandate to promote and preserve the integrity of all national icons including the national anthem.