The Federal Government has urged Nigerians to seek permission before using the national anthem. In a statement released on Wednesday, October 8, the Director General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, said seeking permission was necessary to avoid misinterpretation.
He, however, did not state in what context permission should be sought before the anthem could be sung, or its lyrics could be used.
“As custodians of Nigeria’s national symbols, the NOA is tasked with preventing all forms of misuse. The DG emphasised that permission must be sought from the Agency before using the National Anthem to avoid misrepresentation,” the statement partly read.
He also clarified that the Nigerian flag is simply green, white, and green, with the correct shade of green being Emerald 2.0.
Issa-Onilu explained that previous administrations focused solely on infrastructure development while neglecting the critical role of value orientation, leading to the decline of social intervention structures like the Boys’ Scouts, Girls’ Brigade, WAI Brigade, and even the National Orientation Agency itself.
However, he said the current administration recognised this oversight, with President Tinubu extending his support to the agency.
He also stressed the importance of creating local cartoon content to counter the influx of foreign values being conveyed to young Nigerians.