The National Orientation Agency (NOA), has called on Nigerians to key into the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu’s administration and the National Values Charter (NVC) of the agency.
Its Kaduna State Director, Hamisu Mayere, made the call at a town hall meeting on the new national anthem and the NVC on Wednesday.
Mayere emphasised that for Nigeria to move forward, all hands must be on deck as ambassadors of ensuring that the right thing is done at all times.
He recalled that on May 29, the Nigerian Government announced the reversion to the first National Anthem after the National Assembly passed a bill and subsequently signed into law by President Tinubu.
Mayere also emphasised that the national anthem, which is one of Nigeria’s most important national symbols, was supposed to be cherished by all.
He said, “It serves as a
symbol of authority and unification of our people. We therefore call on all the citizens to imbibe and cherish it as an article of faith.
“As patriotic Nigerians, we should know that we don’t have any other place we can call ours except Nigeria.
”All efforts must be geared towards building our nation with positive values that will enable us to be counted among the best in the world.”
The director explained that, with Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the recently launched the NVC aims to reposition the country on the right track of growth and development.
Mayere said that when discussing values, principles, beliefs and ideologies shaping individuals and people were also discussed.
He, therefore, said, ”Individuals must have their values, beliefs and principles that define their identity, without which, time is unguarded and lost.
”So also does a nation need to define its values, without which it would remain backward.”
Mayere said that for such reasons, the National Identity Project became highly important.
This , he said, was to redirect all Nigerians, irrespective of class, ethnicity and religion to the ideals and values for which the nation is traditionally known and used to build the society and their institutions.
He explained that the unveiled NVC tagged: ‘7 for 7 initiative’, states the patriotic obligations between the country and its citizens.
According to Mayere, it is designed to instill a sense of responsibility and commitment to the nation’s development.
He highlighted the initiatives to include security and safety, justice and equity, economic opportunities.
Others are: Quality education, healthcare access, infrastructure development and environmental sustainability.
“The content of the charter should be the values that will guide all Nigerians both leaders and followers in their daily lives, whether in private or public,”Mayere said.
Earlier, the Director-General (D-G) of the agency, Lanre Issa-Onilu, harped on the importance of the new national anthem, value orientation and attitudinal change among Nigerians.
Issa-Onilu, represented by Faith Idojerie, stressed that the anthem’s correct lyrics as approved by Tinubu were crucial in maintaining Nigeria’s integrity and ensuring it continues to inspire patriotism and national pride.
He equally said the town hall meeting was in fulfillment of the president’s declaration that the agency must avail Nigerians how to build the country through sensitisation and re-orientation campaigns.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that participants were religious and traditional leaders, academia, women and youth groups, NYSC and civil societies, among others.
The stakeholders lamented the alarming dearth of patriotism among young Nigerians, stressing that it needed urgent attention.
The stakeholders said that value reorientation and attitudinal change were essential to promote national pride and integrity.
They urged that patriotism must be instilled in children and youth to ensure a better future for Nigeria, pledging to support NOA’s efforts to promote the charter. (NAN)
