National Anthem lyrics impactful, meaningful – DG, NOA

Akpan Umoh, Uyo

The Director General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, has said that the new National Anthem contains the lyrics and is more impactful and meaningful to connecting Nigerians as a people.

Issa-Onilu said this while speaking with newsmen on the activities of the National Orientation Agency in Uyo on Saturday.

He said that the new anthem brings back a sense of patriotism and nationalism as it evokes the consciousness of Nigerians as a people.

According to DG, the lyrics and sound of the national anthem will prove that Nigeria is better up with the new national anthem.

“The National Anthem that we had in 1960 resonates more in comparison with the one we just changed. 

“The lyrics are more impactful and meaningful than the one we just took out. That is the real reason for going back to that,” Issa-Onilu said.

Issa-Onilu noted that the national anthem is part of the value of a country, stressing that while singing, the wordings make us appreciate one another as a people.

He added that come Tuesday, the Agency will assemble all stakeholders in the country to fashion out the proper and acceptable way of rendering the national anthem.

“On Tuesday, next week, we will have a national press conference with the stakeholders. 

“The National Anthem must be officially rendered.

“Everyone must know which one is the official rendition of the national anthem and, so the process will begin on Tuesday. We are going to call for entries for musicians and people like that.

“This is an opportunity for us to have a National Anthem that we all connect with. Do we have to use Western instruments for our national anthem?

“Can we put together our local instrument and produce a beautiful rendition? 

“So, these are the things we are looking at. We want a national anthem that is Nigerian in nature, texture and tonality,” he said.

The DG urged the citizens to continue to support government policies and programmes as all are geared towards a better Nigeria.

He added that the policies President Bola Tinubu has taken, are the best policies for the nation and should have been taken by successive administrations.

“Yes, the condition that we are now, we cannot lie about it, we are all facing the same realities, but we are facing the necessary realities now.

“This process is a necessity that we must go through. The luck that we have, is that we have a President who is not dodging, and that is why he is taking the responsibility.

“We know that all the actions that he has taken should have been taken 10 or 20 years ago,” he said.

He said that NOA has started what is called: “The Explainer” which comes out every Friday as an E-Newsletter, that circulates all over the country to explain government policies every week.