On Thursday, the Nigerian Senate convened a closed executive session to discuss a potential change to the national anthem.
The proposal under consideration aims to reinstate “Nigeria, We Hail Thee,” the country’s first national anthem adopted on October 1, 1960, which was replaced in 1978 during the military regime of Olusegun Obasanjo.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio instructed the legislators to reconvene in a plenary session the same day to pass the bill through its first and second readings.
Akpabio also announced that a public hearing on the matter would be held at the Senate building, inviting any interested Nigerians to contribute their views, according to a source in the Senate.
“The Senate President just ruled that we should go back to the plenary to pass the bill – 1st and 2nd reading today, thereafter, any Nigerian who is interested can come to the Senate building for a public hearing,” the source said.
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A source familiar with the discussions during the executive session informed SaharaReporters that the Senate leadership “aims to reintroduce the old anthem and intends for the bill to pass both the first and second readings today.”
The report learned that Senators Danjuma Goje and Adams Oshiomhole advocated for a public hearing before amending the national anthem, but the Senate leadership pushed for an immediate return to the former anthem. Consequently, the leadership aimed for the bill to pass its first and second readings on the same day.
The issue, listed on Thursday’s Senate Order paper, sparked significant debate during the executive session. Senator Yahaya Abubakar from Kebbi, a former Senate Majority Leader, suggested nationwide consultations, arguing that altering the anthem amid economic hardship might be seen as a diversion from pressing issues.
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