The man that composed Nigeria’s National anthem Pa Benedict Odiase is dead.CKN Nigeria learnt he died last night in his sleep.We here reproduces one of the last interviews Pa Odiase granted.
One of the greatest fears of Pa Benedict Odiase (MON) is publicity. Although,he shouldbe inthe publicglare, as the composer of thewords making up theNigerian national anthem, he prefers thequiet life his Oregun, Lagos residence avails him. But like a goldenfish, there was renewedinterest inthe media to get this man to speak about his life, which was buoyed by the fact that Nigeria turns 52 years today as a nation,as well as therecent revelationby the Musical Copyrights Society Nigeria, MCSN, that he had been handed royalties for his work being exploited at various locationsin theworld. That spawned curiosity on the state of his well-being. Is he languishingin penury like numerous other heroes of our nationalism? How much help does he need from the government? The work he did in1978 is, undoubtedly, one of themost sung lyricsin Nigeria. A heroby all standards, Pa Odiase retired in 1992 as a Deputy Commissioner of Police after being the Director of Music with theNigeria Police Band. He shared some insights into this noble endeavour with NGOZI EMEDOLIBE (National Mirror Newspaper).
Many young Nigerians would like to know the origin of the National Anthem which is very populartoday?
I composed themusic titled“Arise O Compatriots” inMay 1978. The words (lyrics) were made available by officials of theFederal Ministry of Informationin an open competition.
Did the government provide the words for you to play with?
It was an opencompetition,but apart from being an open competition,composerswere guidedthat themusic must not be more than two stanzas; that explains why the National Anthem has only two stanzas.
When did you join the police?
I joinedtheNigeria Police Force inMarch 1954 and served inthe force based on instructionsfrom the Police High Command. I was not commissioned by theFederal Government of Nigeria or any of its departments or agenciesspecifically for thepurpose of writing and composingthe anthem. As I said earlier, I was never commissionedby the Federal Government of Nigeria specificallyto compose theanthem; it was opento all Nigerians. I sent inmy entry inMay 1978 ina private capacity and not as a government employee.
What happened after the entries were made?
I was not consultedformally in writing before thework was adopted as theNigerian National Anthem, but it was verbally announced that my composition was adjudged as theone selected by theSupreme Military Council (SMC) at thetime. All individualentries were sent to theFederal Ministry of Information, Lagos. The entries were shortlisted to only three as announced by Mr. Christopher Oyesiku, then theleader of theFederal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) Choir. The shortlisted entries were those of Professor Laz Ekwueme, Professor Akin Euba, then of the University of Lagos and my humble self.
Howmuch were you paid by the SMC for that adoption?When the composition was formally chosen as theNigeria National Anthem on October 1, 1978, there was no immediate reward or commendation. I retired from the Force in 1992 as a Deputy Commissioner of Police.
Did you cede the right of the works to the Federal Government?
I have never ceded rights or interest inthe composition either by writing or otherwise to the Federal Government. I have the National Honour of Member of the Order of the Niger (MON) given to me in December, 2001. The award was givento me inrecognitionof my outstanding contributionto the growth and development of music in theNigeria Police Force as attested to by my citation and not because of the composition of the National Anthem.
Whoadministers the rights at the moment?
I have transferred my intellectual/ copyright interest in the work, “Arise O Compatriot” being used as the Nigerian National Anthem to the Musical Copyright Society Nigeria (MCSN) from the Performing Rights Society of United Kingdom,for protection since 1998. This decision to accedemy rights to MCSN has paid off handsomely as thesociety has protected my work and paid royalties to me in hard currencies from the usage (exploitation) of my composition around theworld and locally.

www.cknnigeria.com/2013/06/odiasecomposer-of-national-anthem-is.html?m=1