Wale Jagun
President Bola Tinubu has signed into law, a bill seeking to revert to the old national anthem, “Nigeria, We Hail Thee”.
The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, disclosed this while addressing lawmakers at the joint session of the National Assembly.
The bill was approved by Mr President Wednesday morning.
The bill seeks to replace the anthem, ‘Arise o compatriots’ with the old one, ‘Nigeria, We Hail Thee’, which was adopted as the country’s first national anthem on October 1, 1960.
The old anthem was dropped in 1978 by the Olusegun Obadanjo’s military regime.
The bill was passed at the Senate on Tuesday after majority of the Senators supported it through voice votes.
His Excellency, Senator Godswill Akpabio speaking at the joint session, said:
“This morning, Mr President signed into an Act of Parliament, the newly passed National Anthem 2024,” Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, said on Wednesday at a joint session of the National Assembly marking the Silver Jubilee Of Nigeria’s 4th Republic. The occasion coincided with the first anniversary of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Tinubu, who later joined the joint session, confirmed ‘Nigeria, we hail thee’ as the “latest national anthem”.
Akpabio said the sitting was primarily to launch the new national anthem, explaining that the President would not be making a speech because he has to leave to launch the Abuja metro line
The Senate and the House of Representatives had previously passed the legislation to swap the national anthem from “Arise, O Compatriots” to “Nigeria, We Hail Thee” at separate sittings.
Lillian Jean Williams, a British expatriate who lived in Nigeria during its independence, penned the lyrics for “Nigeria, we hail thee,” while Frances Berda composed the music.
