Abuse Of National Flag Worst In Nigeria

Flag Foundation of Nigeria, FFN, is a non-governmental organisation campaigning for better treatment of the Nigerian national flag. In this interview with Oluokun Ayorinde , FFN Director General, Chris Agiri, explains why his foundation is championing the cause of the national flag

What is the big deal about the national flag and what is this campaign all about ?

The big deal is that the national flag of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is the identity of a living country, the entity called Nigeria. The flag is the symbol through which we are identified as a member in the comity of nations. Nigeria is a member of the United Nations and you see our flag flying in the UN Headquarters in New York. The national flag is the symbol of our national unity. It is the civic solemn that represents the collective soul of all Nigerians. Everything about Nigeria is embedded in the concept of the national flag.

Then, in what way are you spreading the message about the need to give better respect to the flag?

On the 16th of September, we celebrated the national flag. On that day, the National flag turned 51and that had to do with the Act that brought the national flag into existence known as Flag and Coat of Arms Ordinance 48 of 1960. Through that very celebration of the flag which we called the National Flag Day, we officially launched one of our programmes known as National Flag Campaign Awareness Initiative with the aim of reawakening the consciousness of the citizens and even the government itself on the importance of the national flag which has now been neglected by all and sundry. It was also to draw the attention of the government and the people to the fact that the issue of the national flag is a fundamental one. Act 2,Chapter 2, Sections 23 and 24 of the 1999 constitution as amended, stated it clearly on the issue of the national flag and the pledge, that our national ethics should be integrity, dignity of labour, patriotism, religious balance and so on. But the nation as a whole and even the government have failed woefully in observing those sections of the constitution. Therefore, what we did as a patriotic organisation which is passionate about the national flag and committed to national unity and an organisation that wants to promote citizenship of lawful care and concern, was to use the instrumentality of the national flag to reawaken that consciousness. One of the strategies used was to organise the programme we just launched; National Flag Awareness Initiative. It is a nationwide programme designed to mobilise the entire nation and then direct their attention towards the nation. We want to promote patriotism in Nigerians and subdue ethnic consciousness and religious bigotry. We are trying to enthrone a culture in which Nigerians will consider national interest first and we intend to make patriotism the trademark of every Nigerian, and that is what the Flag Foundation is all about.

Do you have any plan to take this campaign beyond Abuja and to every nook and cranny of the country?

The structure of the Flag Foundation is such that we operate offices in 36 state capitals and all the local governments across the country. The National Flag Campaign is already on. What we have been doing is what is called institutional approach. I will give you an example- we went to the Defence Headquarters and we found that the flag there is not the standard national flag. But without making any noise, we wrote them about it and the Army, as a patriotic organisation, invited us and they agreed with us that the flag on display was not the right one and if you go now to all the military formations nationwide, you will see the right flag flying at the right height. What the Army does now is that they purchase flags in a common pool and distribute to all the formations and that is a way of ending the system of “cut and sew”. There are some other organisations that we have written to such as the Nigeria Customs. And these are custodians of the national flag. If they are humble enough to take corrections as experts in this matter, we are inclined to believe that the rest of the citizens will follow suit. So, we are putting everything in place towards reaching out, we have our charter in place, we have our people. We are moving strongly for the amendment of Flag and Coat of Arms Ordinance to make room for stiffer penalties against those that abuse the national flag. Our members in the National Assembly will ensure that every step is taken to effect the amendment of that Act.

What do you want them to change in the Act?

We want the penalty against those that desecrates or fly the tattered national flag to be stiffer. The penalty now is just N100 fine for one day. If you display it for 100 days, they will fine you N100 for each day. But we are asking for 10 years imprisonment for anyone that flies a tattered, faded or defaced national flag with the option of fine of N4 million. In the case of any organisation, whoever is the head of that organisation should be dismissed for desecrating the national flag. We are not saying that the national flag should be worshipped. No we are not. The history of flags dates back to 4000 years and the fact that every nation on earth is identified by a national flag shows its importance.

But is that not too harsh?

No. As I’m talking to you now, there is a group in the United States that is advocating life sentence against anybody that burns or destroys their national flag. It is the strongest and most powerful symbol of our national image. It is the umbrella that holds us together. And the Nigerian national flag is one of the best flags on earth in terms of its interpretation. Unfortunately, there is no other nation on earth whose citizens and institutions display the kind of tattered, worn out, defaced flags as we see in all corners of Nigeria, and that is no longer acceptable to Flag Foundation as a patriotic organisation.