The National Orientation Agency (NOA) has just launched a nationwide sensitization campaign in Enugu to promote Nigeria’s new national anthem and national values charter.
Addressing a press conference on Tuesday in Enugu, the State Director NOA, Mrs. Clara Nwachukwu, said this campaign is crucial due to Nigeria’s complex identity shaped by its multilingual, multiethnic, and multi-religious character.
Nigeria’s struggle with national identity dates back to its formation in 1914, when the Northern and Southern protectorates merged. However, the country’s diversity has made it challenging to establish a unified identity. With over 50 languages and 250 dialects, Nigeria’s ethnic groups, such as the Hausa-Fulani, Igbo, and Yoruba, each have their distinct culture and traditions.
The campaign aims to address these challenges by promoting a sense of national unity and shared values, she said. By sensitizing the public about the new national anthem and national values charter, the NOA hopes to foster a greater sense of Nigerian identity and citizenship. This effort is critical in bridging the gaps between the country’s diverse ethnic and religious groups.
“While there is nothing wrong in acknowledging the socio-cultural and religious differences of the various ethnic nationalities in the country,” Nwachukwu maintained that “we must not allow such to deny us the reality that we are now a people with a common destiny.”
“It is worthy of mention that our diversities should be a pillar of strength rather than that of weakness. Worrisomely, the various ethnic groups that make up Nigeria often criticize others and everything that defines them, including their culture, religion, values, and way of life, instead of optimizing these differences as sources of strength to build one of the greatest nations on earth.
“This narrative elicits some critical questions which may be begging for answers. First, what are the plausible strategies that can be adopted to correct these wrongs in the country, in order to create a platform that can ‘build Nigerians that will build Nigeria? Second, how do Nigerians optimize the gains in our diversities and strengths for the enthronement of Nigeria that we all can be proud of?
“It is no doubt that successive governments in Nigeria have made several efforts to provide answers to these questions. All these efforts were channelled towards building a nation characterized by positive values.”
She said President Bola Tinubu’s administration has categorically stated that “we must build Nigerians to build Nigeria,” through sensitization and reorientation campaigns.
“Therefore, in compliance with the directives from the National Headquarters, Abuja, the National Orientation Agency, Enugu State is kick-starting a three month state-wide sensitization and public enlightenment campaign on Nigeria’s National Anthem and National Value Charter today being Tuesday, the 8th day of October 2024. The aim of the programme is to re-orientate and redirect Nigerians, regardless of class, ethnicity, or religion toward the values and principles that have long been associated with our culture and have been the foundation of our institutions and society.
“The introduction of the New National Anthem and the National Values Charter ushers in an important milestone for national pride and identity. This action reflects the changing ideals and aspirations of the nation. Values may be defined as accepted principles or standard of behaviour that are used to characterise individuals and societies.
“The National Values Charter is categorized into two: the Nigerian Promise (the promises made by the Nigerian State through its elected representatives) and the Citizens Code (the obligations of the citizenry to nation-building). This social contract between the Nigerian State and its people is the pivot upon which countries are built and sustained.
“In the same vein, the New National Anthem is a potent call for harmony, equity, and prosperity among Nigerians. In the opening stanza of the new anthem, a powerful sense of unity, patriotism and brotherhood in a country with more than 250 different ethnic nations is established. The cohesive identity of Nigeria is given particular attention, even as it acknowledges the wide variety of cultures and languages that comprise the nation. This unity entails more than just getting along; it also emphasizes on standing together in pride and in support of our country,” she stated.
The Director, however, noted that just as individuals have values and principles which define their identity, without which they will be lost; so does a nation without which, it will be doomed.
“In an increasingly dynamic world, where science and technology have turned the world into a global village, we must establish our identity and values, and live up to them, if we desire to speak and act from a position of strength, in the comity of nations. We must not allow our core values of love, patriotism, resilience, courage, dignity of labour, respect for the sanctity of life, belief in the family as a basic unit of society, justice, fairness, care for our environment, among others be sacrificed on the altar of unregulated adoption of foreign values.
“The nationwide sensitization is more than just a campaign. It is a movement. It is a movement that calls upon each of us as Nigerians to imbibe the shared values and spirit reflecting in both our National Anthem and National Values Charter. As we move forward, let us remember that it is only through unity, respect and commitment to these values that we can achieve the Nigeria of our dreams.”
