Stop Inscribing The Coat Of Arms On The Nigerian Flag – Fashola

The immediate past Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola has come out to warn Nigerians against inscribing the coat of arms on the national flag.

He recently called it an abuse of the national colours, and Nigerians have been reacting.

According to him, Nigeria’s flag does not have a coat of arms in the middle, and it is plain green, white and green, so people should stop seeing the inscriptions as the right thing to do.

Fashola added that Nigerians should always remember to stand up whenever they hear Nigeria’s national anthem being rendered.

His words, “Just this afternoon (Monday), I was asked to hoist a flag of Nigeria. By the time the flag unfurled, I saw that there was a coat of arms in the middle and I whispered to my host that ‘this is not the flag of Nigeria’. Nigeria’s flag does not have a coat of arms in the middle. It is green, white, and green.”

“When I was in primary school, these were the symbolisms of those Independence Day parades, Children’s Day parades, and this was how we were taught to stand up or maintain our position whenever we heard Nigeria’s national anthem being rendered.”

“You sit today and you shudder in your skin what happens today, what people have been taught when the national anthem is rendered.”

“I have had cause to ask people not to sing the anthem for me, either as governor or minister, because I’m not a sovereign. It’s a projection of our minds.”

“These are, for me, the important things to talk about and that’s why I say this anniversary provides an opportunity for reflection and, indeed, inflexion.”