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<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'>FYI…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>
AfricanLanguages@yahoogroups.com [mailto:AfricanLanguages@yahoogroups.com] <b>On
Behalf Of </b>polyglute<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Sunday, February 08, 2009 10:26 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> AfricanLanguages@yahoogroups.com<br>
<b>Subject:</b> [AfricanLanguages] Lagos Assembly conducts session in Yoruba<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'>Here's an interesting news item with
politicians (finally) taking some steps to promote African local languages by
using it in official capacity.<br>
---------------------------------------------------------------------<br>
<b><br>
Lagos Assembly conducts session in Yoruba</b><br>
<br>
Lagos state governor Babatunde Fashola yesterday urged state Assemblies to save
Nigerian languages from extinction by emulating the state's legislature which
has begun conducting sessions in Yoruba.<br>
Speaking at the first legislative session of the Assembly in Yoruba language,
Fashola said that the lawmakers had set a pace in preserving the nation's
language.<br>
Fashola who was represented by Enoch Ajiboso, commissioner of agriculture and
co-operatives, said that the adoption of Yoruba as a second language of
legislation "was a right step in the right direction."<br>
``It is a disaster to just let our languages die. It is not a federal
government issue, let every state be concerned,'' the governor said.<br>
`` If the state House of Assembly can take this step, it will boost our school
children's knowledge of the language and they will appreciate their own.<br>
<b>``If we can teach them science and other subjects in the language, it is
going to bring a lot of development to the society in general,"</b> the
governor said.<br>
He advised that researches be conducted into the Nigerian languages to have a
lingua franca for the nation.<br>
Mrs Chinyere Ohiri-Aniche, a lecturer from the University of Lagos, whose idea
gave birth to legislation in Yoruba in the Assembly, told NAN that she had
written to other states to start the same.<br>
Ohiri-Aniche said Imo and some states in the North could also adopt indigenous
languages and expressed joy that Anambra, Ogun and a few states in the North
had begun.<br>
She said that the nation's Constitution encouraged the use of local languages
by the state and federal legislators.<br>
``Once we use the languages more and more, it will not go into extinction.<br>
``The same way we hope that the federal government will implement the
provisions in the school system,'' she said.<br>
The language expert explained that the issue of lingua franca was not as
important as preserving the more than 400 languages from extinction.<br>
``One language may emerge but for now, let us encourage all to use their own so
that the languages do not die,'' she said. <o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
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<p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:white'>__._,_.___<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AfricanLanguages/message/1132;_ylc=X3oDMTMzYnIwaWVwBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE3MTY0MwRncnBzcElkAzE3MDUwMTk5ODcEbXNnSWQDMTEzMgRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawN2dHBjBHN0aW1lAzEyMzQxMDY4MzAEdHBjSWQDMTEzMg--">Messages
in this topic </a>(</span></span><span class=bld><b><span style='color:#666666'>1</span></b></span><span
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