Peter Obi’s Defaced Flag on Independence Day is a Shameful Desecration of Nigeria’s Identity – Prince Ade Omole

Peter Obi breached the Flags and Coats of Arms Act, Cap. F30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, originally enacted as 1960 No. 48 and commencing on 1 October 1960

On the day Nigerians mark the birth of their nation, a man who wants to lead it sat before a bank of microphones and a camera crew and chose to do so beside a mutilated 🇳🇬national flag. The Nigerian flag has been three vertical bands, green, white, green, since Pa Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi drew it and the nation raised it on 1 October 1960. Nothing else belongs on it. The National Orientation Agency (NOA), the body charged with guarding our national symbols, has said plainly that the authentic flag has no symbols. Yet the flag beside clueless Mr Peter Obi carries the red eagle and white horse of the coat of arms stamped across the white band, with a gold fringe dangling off its edge like decoration at a hotel banquet.

This is not a trivial wardrobe choice. The coat of arms is a separate emblem of state, not a logo to be pinned on the flag whenever someone wants a room to look more important. The white band stands for peace and unity, and Mr Obi’s backdrop filled it with ornament, as though the plain flag were too humble for the stage he was standing on. Altering the flag this way runs against the Flag and Coat of Arms Act, as the NOA has reminded the public, and it turns a symbol that belongs to every Nigerian into a prop for one man’s photo opportunity.

“By using a defaced Nigerian flag on Independence Day, Peter Obi has shamefully desecrated a national symbol of the very country he claims he wants to lead. The Nigerian flag is a sacred national symbol, not a prop to be altered. To desecrate the national symbol on Independence Day, of all days, shows a shocking level of disregard for Nigeria’s identity, history and sovereignty,” fumed Renewed Hope Advocate and Nigeria Diaspora Leader, Prince Ade Omole, who described the incident as an affront to every Nigerian.

“Anyone aspiring to the Presidency should know better than to treat the flag as a decorative prop. Before asking Nigerians to entrust him with the leadership of the country, Obi should first demonstrate the basic respect expected of anyone who claims to put Nigeria first. Mr Obi defaced the flag on Independence Day. A man this careless has no business near Aso Rock,” Omole declared in a statement condemning the act.

What is wrong with the Nigerian flag in Obi’s Prop Photograph

a. Unauthorised symbols on the flag. The authentic flag is a plain green-white-green vertical triband with no symbol, inscription, logo or emblem. The NOA has repeatedly said the flag carries no symbols. The one in the photo has graphics printed across its white band, so it is non-standard.

b. A red eagle emblem on the white band. The prominent red eagle is not part of the approved design.

c. A second emblem beneath the eagle. A white, outlined figure sits below the red eagle, partly lost in the cloth’s fold.

d. The coat of arms is mixed into the flag. Nigeria’s flag and coat of arms are separate national symbols. The coat of arms shouldn’t be superimposed on the flag, and the NOA and public commentators have highlighted this distinction.

Flying the flag with additions is prohibited under the Flag and Coat of Arms Act, and the NOA has said altering or misrepresenting the flag violates it.

The point of seeking to lead is that you hold yourself to a higher standard than the people before you. If he cannot be bothered to check what the national flag is supposed to look like before standing in front of it, why should anyone believe he will check the budget, the contract or the security brief?

Leadership is mostly made of small acts of care that nobody applauds: checking the details, asking whether something is right before doing it, and respecting the symbols that belong to 200 million people, not to you. This was an easy test. A published standard exists, and a calendar announced Independence Day well in advance. He failed it in front of every television camera in the room, and he failed it on 1 October, of all days, when generations of Nigerians who fought, negotiated and sacrificed for the right to raise that flag are owed, at the very least, a flag that looks the way they raised it.

“A man who cannot show basic respect for the national flag on Independence Day has no business asking for the presidency. It is careless, vain, and shows exactly the shallow thinking we cannot afford in Aso Rock. If this is how he treats the flag on the nation’s birthday, imagine how he would treat the nation itself. The remedy is simple. Mr Obi should take the flag down, apologise to Nigerians publicly, and show that he can learn from a costly mistake. Nobody should hold their breath, though. A man who is asking for our votes could not even honour our flag. Call it a slip if you like, but it is a preview. Nigerians have watched this film before, and we know the ending”, Omole concluded.

Hon. Tosin Olayinka, LL.B (Hons), B.L., LL.M (London)
Programme Director,
Renewed Hope Global
WhatsApp: +234 704 117 6329.

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