May 30, (THEWILL) – The National Orientation Agency (NOA) has directed all Community Orientation and Mobilization Officers (COMOS) in the 774 local governments to commit the newly signed National Anthem to memory by Monday, June 3, 2024.
President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday, assented to the bill that mandated Nigeria to revert to the use of ‘Nigeria, We hail Thee’ as the new national anthem, thus replacing ‘Arise O Compatriots’.
The 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.
The Agency, in a circular issued on Thursday through its Deputy Director, Press, Paul Odenyi, said the 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.
“We are excited to embark on this new chapter in our national history. 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,” NOA said.
The NOA DG urged all Community Officers to take the directive seriously and make every effort to learn the new National Anthem Within the deadline “as you would be the grassroots marshals for the implementation of this new policy of government”.
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.
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