Dr Babajide Olagbaiye, the 81-year-old Parade Marshal, has praised Nigeria’s 2023 Independence Day Parade in New York, which was held in the rain, as the finest so far since the event began in 1991.
Nigerians in the United States and officials from the Nigerian consulate in New York flocked to the march on Saturday, carrying umbrellas and raincoats.
The parade and carnival were organized by the Organisation for the Advancement of Nigerians (OAN) in collaboration with the Consulate General of Nigeria in New York.
The parade, which started on Second Avenue, 54th Street in Manhattan, ended at the Nigerian House on 44th Street, and was followed by the Independence Day carnival at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza.
Speaking at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, Olagbaiye said the parade was colourful with a good number of law enforcement officers participating.
“This year’s parade is the best so far compared to other parades even under the rain.
“A lot of the attendees today are first timers, even the law enforcement officers are happy to be at the parade.
“We have worked hard to get law enforcement officers to join us in the parade before but today a good number of them are here,” he said.
According to him, the parade has been improving every year for the past 32 years, and that the first parade which was organised in 1991 was also done under the rain.
“The first parade we had was in Harlem 1991; the way the rain is falling today was the way rain it fell that day, but today marks the second day it would happen since we started the parade.
“We have been very prayerful, there was only one parade that was completely flushed by rain, but other parades have been successful,” he said.
According to him, the organization started as a Pastoral Council and when it became popular the name was changed to OAN.
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