UN Mother Tongue Day: Ohaneze, ADF propose scholarship to boost Igbo Lang study

…to establish Igbo schools on streets.

By Ezurike Ugochukwu & Enoch Oladipupo

As the world marks the 2021 United Nation’s Mother Tongue Day, Ohaneze Ndigbo, the Apex Igbo social-cultural organization and the Alaigbo Development Forum.(ADF) have advocated for a scholarship scheme for  students who are ready to study Igbo language in tertiary institutions.

The President Ohaneze Ndigbo, Lagos Branch, Chief Solomon Ogbonna Aguene said there was need to train new generation of fluent Igbo language speakers.

He said this while speaking with journalists in his office at the commemoration of 2021 Mother Tongue Day celebration.

Chief Aguene flanked by Hon Ugwu on the right and Chief Ekwilo while he addresses journalists

Aguene frowned at situation where Igbo people in particular hold their meetings in English, such he said was not acceptable, stating that he would appeal to the conscience of the people to change such trend.

The arts and culture enthusiasts said he would consult with the national President of Ohaneze Ndigbo, Professor George Obiozor as he visits Lagos on the need to liaise with government to make mandatory, the use of mother tongue at every Igbo gathering and also as a criteria to contest elective posts in Nigeria.

He said “I intend to appeal to the people for us to make mandatory speaking of our language at meetings.

“We will seek government support to make language one of the prerequisites to get elective posts, as well as advocate that for one to be President, he need to have knowledge of the three major Nigerian languages.”

Some of the participants at the event

“As I will host the President of Ohaneze professor George Obiozor, I will bring together all Igbos in Lagos; Chairman council of Ndi Eze, Council of Elders and some king makers whom i would rob mind together with to see how best to encourage our people.

“We must respect our language and spread the message.We can’t get what we want without speaking our language, that’s the bond of each person, country, tribe, village; their bond is their language.

“Our not being effective in our language has denied us a lot. Our women need to be properly involved because a church without women lacks testimony.

In his welcome address, the Coordinator of the programme, John Chukwu, said the politics of the remembrance of language started in Bangladesh when they reminded the world the importance of not allowing languages to go into extinction.

Chukwu

Chukwu who is the founder and initiator of Indigenous Language and Culture Initiative (ILCI) said the ILCI had birthed the new Igbo newspaper called, “Ekwe kuo Ama Agba” saying that its cheering that the whole world set out a day for the remembrance of the over 7000 global mother tongues of which about 43 per cent is drifting into extinction.

“The importance of mother tongue to the Igbo nation has spurred the Igbos to join the campaign/ awareness on the need to save their mother tongue,”he posited.

Chukwu said it hadn’t been easy as several efforts made to get Igbos join the crusade has not yielded desired result.

He thanked various individuals and groups that have given them support so far.

He further spoke on efforts made to institute fans club in schools, production of the Ekwe kuo Ama Agba Newspaper which is in its 3rd edition and the development of various social media applications to promote the language.

“We have been able to meet the Alaigbo Development Foundation(ADF) which has played a key role in promoting Igbo Ideology.

“Presently, we are developing a website where we can be passing messages across. In no distant time, the channel will be on, and we will be having regular review of newspapers and other news coverages.

“We are also creating an application which people could download to subscribe for the newspaper, it will cover not only politics, it will cover other areas, as business, town union news, health, entertainment, sports, education and others.”

For Mrs Nneka Chimezie, time has come for the Igbos especially the leaders to speak in one voice and condemn the proliferation of Non -Governmental Organizations(NGOs) who are masquerading as promoters of Igbo language but are only motivated by selfish desires.

She called on parents to give their children good foundation that will help them to learn and speak their mother tongue, stressing that the first language a child speaks is the one they hear from the parents, which makes the home the bedrock of language.

Chimezie

Chimezie who is the chairman of Ekwe Kuo Ama Agba and the National Coordinator, Igbo Women Forum(IWF), stated that ‘Igbo language is a dying language of a living people’, insisted that failure to preserve it spells doom for the Igbo nation as no other group would preserve it for them.

She stated that several incentives have been earmarked to encourage and promote speaking of the language.

“We have a programme where we will offer scholarship to anyone who wants to study Igbo language in tertiary institution to enable us have enough Igbo teachers.

“We want to establish Igbo school at every state, every corner and every street in Nigeria to facilitate our efforts in makeing it accessible to our children.

“We want to take Igbo language to their door steps, to all street especially here in Lagos that’s how far we intend to go.

“We will work with the committee set up by ADF to visit schools and talk to students about Igbo language.

“We have put our language into a cupboard for too long, its time to open that cupboard back and show it to the whole world,” Chimezie maintained.

Ifeanyichukwu Mok

The Secretary of ADF Lagos branch. Emmanuel Ifeanyichukwu Mok, stated that Igbos were living  peaceful till the White-men came and brought conflict.

Historians and philosophers he said have proven that Igbo culture is one of the advanced cultures in the whole world.

“For more than 6000 years, there was no act of annexation in Igbo land, they never crossed from their villages to other nation’s because their traditional law system was so just that there was no need for domination.

The Ohafia War Dance

“It’s the domination of the White-man that brought war and disunity. We need to go back and bring back our languages and culture,” he said.

Mok stated that lack of unity has made Igboman endangered specie in Nigeria, he passionately called on them to support their brother’s and sisters in their various businesses and endeavours.

“We are hard working people, we need to support ourselves. Just like the Igbos, the Israelites are world over 14million people, but in Israel, the population is around 10million.

“The Igbos in Igboland are close to 30million, but across Nigeria, we might be more than 50million.
We don’t patronize ourselves, but we use this medium to solicit for that.

Innoson cars on display

“The impact of Toyota and Samsung on the economy of Japan and Korea is more than Nigeria’s annual national budget.

“We have companies like Innoson. If we support them, they will grow to create employment, and boost our economy,” He said.

Chiefs Chris Ekwilo(Anya), Nze Henry Dim and Hon. Obinna Ugwu who are prominent Igbos living in Lagos were unanimous in their call to the Ohaneze Ndigbo President to use his office to unite Igbos both at home and diaspora on the need to embrace their culture which is very rich.

They called on pastors of Igbo extraction to de-emphasis the arbitrary speaking of English language especially in an all Igbos church worship.

Ekwilo, Ugwu & Dim

Living in isolation and secluded life they posited is not part of of Igbo’s culture and tradition rather of the White-man.

Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO Secretary General

UNESCO has however advocated that education based on the first language or mother tongue, must begin from the early years, as early childhood care and education is the foundation of learning.