As soon as parliamentarians last Tuesday passed a bill to bring back ‘Nigeria, We Hail Thee’ as the national anthem, it produced several impromptu exhibitions like what we found with TV interview guest Felix Morka giving an interesting chorister rendition of the lyrics while on-air.

Singing out the three stanzas out loud was the opening act before the All Progressives Congress National Publicity Secretary Morka started to discuss how far the country has come since a new administration came in on 29 May 2023.

Other times, although it might have been for bants or the thrill of conversation, the Super Falcons captain Rasheedat Ajibade has been seen in a video trying to learn ‘Nigeria, We Hail Thee’ in a sing-a-long. The question to you is: can you make a recital with your eyes closed, but do this in under one minute and four seconds?

May We Rise for the National Anthem! pic.twitter.com/ud5rdzkvmk

— Felix C. Morka (@Morka2Felix) May 30, 2024

Any way you prefer to do it – be it covering your eyes with the palms or a comfy sleep mask, make a video of you singing ‘Nigeria, We Hail Thee’ out loud in 64 seconds, then post the recording on your Instagram and afterwards inviting Meiza Nigeria to collaborate with you in the post. Simple! By this, you would have completed a milestone and stand to win loads for your effort.

You got it right that this is a challenge and it starts today up until 12 June Democracy Day.

ALSO READ: Who can recite Nigeria’s old national anthem lyrics without feeling divided?

There will be three winners getting amazing rewards for their neat recitals. Still, the benefits will be particularly for the likes and comments their videos must have garnered from Instagram all through the duration of Meiza’s Sing Out ‘Nigeria, We Hail Thee’ Out Loud contest.

When the Bill For An Act to Provide for the National Anthem of Nigeria and for Matters Related Thereto was passed on Tuesday, 28 May – a day before President Bola Tinubu marked a year of his administration – it represented a return to factory mode when the sentiment of Nigeria gaining independence on October 1, 1960, was still fresh.

The lyrics, according to politicians related more closely to Nigeria’s current struggle or essence, unlike the now discarded ‘Arise, O Compatriots’ anthem of 1978 that every millennial, Gen Zer or early iGens had known for the course of their lives.

Live that sentiment of Nigeria’s independence from British colonists and go back to when the journey as a country started with your loved ones in time for Democracy Day when all the winners will be announced.

Sing out 3 Stanzas of ‘Nigeria We Hail Thee’

Nigeria, we hail thee,
Our own dear native land,
Though tribe and tongue may differ,
In brotherhood, we stand,
Nigerians all, and proud to serve
Our sovereign Motherland.

Our flag shall be a symbol
That truth and justice reign,
In peace or battle honour’d,
And this we count as gain,
To hand on to our children
A banner without stain.

O God of all creation,
Grant this our one request,
Help us to build a nation
Where no man is oppressed,
And so with peace and plenty
Nigeria may be blessed.

ALSO READ: How Bola Tinubu marked 25 years of unbroken democracy in Nigeria

Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.