Lagos politicians, including Lanre Sunmi Odesanya, Mrs. Adefunmilayo Tejuoso, Tolani Ali-Balogun, and Moshood Mayegun on Thursday, September 26, called for the preservation of the Yoruba language to prevent its extinction.
Odesanya, lawyer, former state lawmaker, and Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s Special Adviser on Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) and Regional Integration, said the route to preservation is to encourage Yoruba children to speak the language.
Tejuoso, lawyer and former Lagos House of Assembly Deputy Speaker, urged Yoruba to be proud of their language, culture, tradition, and history.
Ali-Balogun, Commissioner for Basic Education, disclosed plans by his ministry to mandate teachers to teach various subjects in both English and Yoruba to facilitate internalisation and understanding.
A retired permanent secretary, Bashir Braimoh, lamented policy summersault in Nigeria, recalling that a group of experts, led by Prof. Babatunde Fafunwa, had highlighted the importance of teaching through the mother tongue more than three decades ago.
Lagos State All Progressives Congress (APC) Deputy Chairman Mayegun warned against the neglect of the Yoruba language, saying that it could lead to cultural enslavement and displacement of cherished traditional values.
They spoke at an event heralding the Yoruba Week organised by the Office of DAWN and Regional Integration in Alausa Secretariat, Ikeja.
The highlight of the occasion was the presentation of the book: ‘Ancient Wisdom for Modern Life,’ written by Abisola Omolere, a lawyer and cultural nationalist.
At the ceremony were House of Assembly House Committee on Establishment and Training Oladele Ajayi, Lagos APC Deputy Woman Leader Kehinde Babalola, Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office, Kehinde Gbajumo, and Special Adviser to Governor on Media and Publicity Gboyega Akosile.
Odesanya, former Lagos APC secretary, lamented that in the West African School Certificate (WASC) examination, the Yoruba Language has taken the back seat as an option, adding that History is also not a compulsory subject.
He hailed Omolere for writing the book, which will encourage a reading habit and foster interest in the study of the language.
Odesanya said he invited Mrs Tejuoso to chair the event because she was the lawmaker who moved the motion that the House of Assembly should adopt Yoruba for deliberations on the floor before it was resolved that lawmakers should always speak Yoruba on Thursdays.
He said his office decided to propagate the speaking of Yoruba in fulfillment of its mandate to jealously guard the cultural heritage.
Describing Yoruba as a global language, he said while it is spoken in Benin Republic, Cuba, Brazil, and Jamaica, it is being jettisoned in Southwest Nigeria where there is a need to propagate the culture of Omoluabi.
Odesanya warned about the consequences of doing away with ancient wisdom as exemplified in Yoruba proverbs.
He lamented that a Yoruba Language graduate who asked the education commissioner to help him get a job could not state three Yoruba proverbs.
Odesanya, who urged the Yoruba race to brace up for the threat to its language, promised to distribute the book to Yoruba teachers in Lagos.
Tejuoso, who was decked in a Yoruba attire-an Aso Ofi-befitting a Yoruba noble, lauded Odesanya for his roles as a lawyer, lawmaker and special adviser, who has dedicated the last week of September to the celebration of Yoruba week.
She said Sanwo-Olu had done well in Lagos through his support for the study of Yoruba and sustenance of the state’s reputation as the Centre of Accommodation and Excellence.
The deputy speaker said while non-Yoruba are learning the language, Yoruba people who refuse to embrace the language are eroding cultural beliefs and values.
Tejuoso lamented that the attempts to correct children nowadays by parents in a proper Yoruba cultural way are misinterpreted as child abuse.
She lauded the governor for nominating Odesanya as special adviser on DAWN and the House of Assembly for clearing him.
Hailing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his giant strides, Tejuoso said Yoruba should support him and not pull down his administration.
She assured that Nigeria will savour a big relief after the hard surgical operation embarked upon by the President.
Ali-Balogun, who was a special guest, thanked Odesanya for his initiative, saying that the tradition, culture, and language of Yoruba should be protected, preserved, and elevated.
The commissioner said while Hausa, Fulani, and Igbo enjoyed speaking their languages in their public offices, Yoruba people prefer to speak English.
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He said: “We should train our children to speak our language. The Western world and the British Council have warned us that in 20 years, the Yoruba language may extinct. Let us revive our culture.
“Our teachers should teach their subjects in both English and Yoruba. The governor has said we should also speak Yoruba at the State Executive Council meeting. UNICEF said students learn better when they are taught in Yoruba up to the age of nine.
Braimoh recalled that during the Babangida regime, Fafunwa introduced education in the mother tongue, so that in the first six years, children would be taught in Yoruba.
He said: “If they can’t speak Yoruba between one and six years, then, they may not be able to speak the language again.”
Photo caption: Akosile, Tejuoso, Odesanya, Omolere, and Gbajumo at the Yoruba Week at Alausa Secretariat, Ikeja
