NDC's Doherty clarifies anthem incident at Lagos event

At a town hall meeting in Lagos, NDC gubernatorial candidate Doherty addressed an incident where attendees, including the party's presidential candidate Peter Obi, sang the former national anthem, "Arise, O Compatriots," instead of the current anthem. Doherty explained on Nigeria Info 99.3FM that the crowd's emotional response led to the spontaneous singing of the old anthem, but he confirmed that the new national anthem was eventually performed.

He emphasized that Nigeria has only one national anthem, which is the current one. This incident occurred after Nigeria officially reverted to its former anthem, "Nigeria, We Hail Thee," in May 2024, replacing "Arise, O Compatriots," which had been in use since 1978.

Doherty's remarks aimed to clarify the situation and reinforce the importance of the official anthem.