Trending video shows Tinubu, Ministers singing old National Anthem at FEC meeting

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and some other officials of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) were overheard singing the former national anthem of Nigeria, “Arise, O Compatriots,” during an FEC session on Monday even though the Federal Government had restored the former national anthem in 2024.

The move has been witnessed through a video showing the proceedings of the FEC session, and it has been making rounds on social media.

According to the video, President Tinubu and some other officials of his cabinet were witnessed singing “Arise, O Compatriots,” the former national anthem of Nigeria that became invalid since the signing of the National Anthem Act, 2024 into law by the President on May 29, 2024.

The legislation restored “Nigeria, We Hail Thee” as the country’s official national anthem, replacing “Arise, O Compatriots,” which had been adopted in 1978.

The return of “Nigeria, We Hail Thee,” originally used at Nigeria’s independence in 1960, followed the passage of the National Anthem Bill, 2024, by the National Assembly and its subsequent assent by President Tinubu.

Reactions to this have been elicited from people on various online forums, with many Nigerians asking why the old anthem is being recited in an official government meeting when it was already replaced according to law.

At the time this report was filed, no official statement had been made by the Presidency concerning the old anthem used at the FEC meeting.