NIGERIA REVERTS TO INDEPENDENCE-ERA ANTHEM AMID ECONOMIC TURMOIL

Thu 30 May 2024:

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu signed a bill on Wednesday to reinstate the national anthem “We Hail Thee,” composed by a British expatriate and used at independence, replacing “Arise O’ Compatriots.” Critics argue this move is a distraction from the country’s worsening economic crisis.

The bill, introduced last Thursday, passed swiftly without legislative debate. President Tinubu, addressing parliament on the same day, faces a challenging economic landscape with inflation soaring to a 28-year high of 33.20% during his first year in office.

The anthem, discarded in 1978 by then military head of state Olusegun Obasanjo, was initially dropped due to its colonial origins. Many Nigerians are skeptical of the anthem’s return, viewing it as insignificant compared to the pressing issues of inflation and security.

Cheta Nwanze, lead partner at SBM Intelligence, expressed frustration: “It is a waste of time, What is more important are inflation and security problems, that is what the government should squarely be looking at.”

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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