By Seun ‘Bolaji Abati PhD
As the nation continues to gallop in economic holocaust giving no chance for the needed reliefs, Nigerians woke up to the news of bringing back the colonial National Anthem for our fatherland.
Perhaps, the political gladiators must have thought that bringing back the old anthem will provoke the spirits of our fallen heroes to rebuild Nigeria within a spate of time. That I cannot tell. What is is so suprising is the speed at which the bill landed, approved and signed into law by the Legislative and the executive arms of our nation.
If laws to control the price of domestic had been passed quickly, maybe, Nigerians would have been relieved of food crisis. If laws to adequately maintain roads had been quickly passed, maybe we should be competing with the land of our colonial master right now. If laws to revive our educational sector had been quickly passed and assented to, maybe, the quality of education would have improved and better restored.
Invoking the spirit of late Nnamdi Azikiwe, Sardauna of Sokoto, Obafemi Awolowo and the rest is not a bad idea. Rather, it would have been better to also seize this opportunity to REDESIGN OUR NATIONAL FLAG for a new identity.
When South Africa returned from the apartheid and democracy was restore, the great Mandiba, Nelson Mandela rebranded the nation’s flag to the joy of all. Maybe it is time to do same for our nation.
In the meantime, the president and the Legislators should be commended for achieving this feat. For once, they have proved to the nation that they can work together harmoniously for the good of our dear country.
Kudos!
Meanwhile, our government should remember that the old Anthem hates corruption. It must not be stained. Otherwise, we won’t have anything to go return back to. The Anthem hates moral decadence, hardships, poverty, poor roads, poor wages, insecurity, kidnapping, and weak Naira. It hates arbitrary wastage of tax payers money by political moneybags and underdevelopment. How do we tackle all these?
In addition to rebranding the national flag, it is also about time to amend our constitution on the academic qualifications of those who run the affairs of government at all levels. Rishi Sunak, Joe Biden, Macron are not average certificate holders (GSSCE) as currently being entrenched in our constitution. In order not to be pulled back in the future, it’s time to do the needful. Pull it off!
In conclusion, I see the new but old National Anthem as a symbol of true unity, peace and progress which can bring back the old glory of our nation. It is about time to rejig our patriotism to our nation and for our government to show some love to citizens by rising up to our needs at all times.
The older the wine, the better the state. Welcome back, our National Anthem of honor.
