Nigerian leaders can’t speak English properly —Don

Prof. Adeyemi Daramola of the Department of English and Literary Studies, University of Lagos, Akoka, has described the use of the English Language as a medium of communication among Nigerian leaders, past or present, as poor.

Daramola said this during the recent public presentation of two new books by Prof. Segun Awonusi, also of the university.

The don, while reviewing one of the books, entitled Essentials of English Phonetics and Phonology, at the event, said, “The English Language is not properly used at all in Nigeria. The people in government, corporate organisations and individuals don’t know how to use the language properly.

“It is unfortunate that all Nigerian Presidents and Heads of State, past and present, including politicians, don’t speak English properly. Immediate President Goodluck Jonathan’s command of the language was very poor and his wife was even poorer.”

Daramola also noted that some indigenous Nigerian languages, including the three major languages – Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba – were slowly dying.

“People are not taking enough care of our languages. It is my belief that Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Birom, Urhobo and many other languages are dying. That is tragic for individuals and the country in general.

“But, when it comes to English language, I tell people that it is in the mortuary. We need somebody to revive it,” he said.

He called on language experts in the country and lecturers in the English departments of all Nigerian universities to do something urgent to revive the language and to give it a new lease of life.

“The written and spoken varieties of English are in very bad shape in the country. That is why a publication of two books by Prof. Awonusi is a big contribution to the revival of the language today. We have to do something about it, otherwise we are going to be in trouble,” he said.

In his review, Daramola, who took the gathering through a brief pronounciation drill during the event, also described Essentials of English Phonetics and Phonology as a highly technical book that deals with the “essence of human existence” and at the same time, confirms the author’s prowess as an “academician”.

But the book presentation event itself was nearly robbed of its essence by the worrisome Lagos traffic situation, which ensured that many of the invited guests either arrived very late to the venue or did not get there at all.

In his welcome address, the host, Awonusi, who is also a former Vice Chancellor of the Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, Ogun State, said the cost of publishing in the country had become almost prohibitive and books were increasingly out of the reach of the average student in Nigerian universities.

“How many undergraduates, even post-graduate students, will buy a textbook for about N3,000 when they have between 10 and 15 books to buy in one semester?” he asked.

Also, he noted that, to make the matter worse, most book publishers had taken to shying away from the publication of books that were products of research.

The event was attended by the Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Prof. Rahman Bello; the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman, Governing Council of the Lagos State University, Prof. Bayo Ninalowo; the Onisin of Ilusin, Oba Taiwo Adesanya; a representative of Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State, Dr. Shodade; former president of the Nigerian Academy of Engineers, Prof. Ayodele Ogunye; Dean, Faculty of Law, UNILAG, Prof. Akin Ibidapo-Obe and a representative of Gen. Oladipo Diya, Prince Gbenga Oshinowo, among other dignitaries. (Punch)