The National Orientation Agency (NOA) says the federal government has not allocated funds for the promotion of the new national anthem, contrary to reports on social media.
The agency’s director-general, Lanre Issa-Onilu, gave a speech on Wednesday in Abuja during the official unveiling of the new national anthem.
Recall that a bill reinstating the former national anthem was signed into law by President Bola Tinubu on May 29.
Nonetheless, there have been objections to the anthem’s reinstatement.
Social media users have been claiming that Atiku Bagudu, the minister of budget, stated that the new national anthem cost the federal government N814 billion.
The director-general responded to the allegation by stating that the organisation has not been paid for the national anthem.
“The NOA is a custodian for national symbols, which include the constitution, the currency, the national anthem, the national pledge, the flag, the coat of arms, and the seal of the president,” he said.
“So if there is any agency that would have received that money, it would be NOA.
“I can assure you, as I speak to you, that the federal government has not spent one naira or allocated one naira for the national anthem. There has been no allocation of N814 billion.
“What we have done so far as the NOA is to rely on our structure. With or without the national anthem, we work on a daily basis.”
