Fwd: Elders resolve to stop Yoruba Language Decline

[Oladipo Salami]

--- Oladipo Salami <diposalami at hotmail.com> wrote:


> Subject: Elders resolve to stop Yoruba Language
> Decline
> Date: Thu, 30 Nov 2006 11:01:06 +0000
> 
> Fron THE NATION (newspaper), Wednesday, November 29,
> 2006.
> 
> To check the decline in the use of Yoruba Language
> and its effect on 
> culture, a group of elders met in Ibadan, Oyo State
> yesterday, recommending 
> that Yoruba be made compulsory as an admission
> criterion into tertiary 
> institutions.
>    The Yoruba Centre of Excellence (YCE) made the
> recommendation at a news 
> conference in Ibadan. Speaking at the conference
> organised by the Odu'a 
> Investment Company Limited with the aim of saving
> the Yoruba Language from 
> extinction, the Chairman of the group, Chief Olusoji
> Smith said that he was 
> challenged through the write-ups of two journalists,
> Rueben Abati of  The 
> Guardian Newspaper and Tola Adenle of The Nation
> Newspapers. Abati in his 
> "Our expatriate children" of 24th February 2003 and
> Adenle in "Yoruba and 
> disappearing languages" of February 2, 2004 had
> expressed fears about 
> dwindling status of the Yoruba language.
>   According to Smith, who also doubles as the
> Chairman of the Yoruba Tennis 
> Club, Onikan, Lagos, the articles spurred him to
> action by inviting 
> dignitaries to the first meeting and conference of
> January 17, 2006.
>   He noted that the grouo is non-political, but
> intended to collaborate and 
> co-operate with other associations and bodies like
> the Yoruba Elders Forum, 
> Yoruba World Council and Egbe Akomolede Yoruba.
> Flaying the attitude of some 
> parents who do not encourage their children to speak
> Yoruba at home except 
> English Smith said: "it is an act of throwing one's
> heritage and culture 
> away".
>    The group called on the government at all levels
> to adhere strictly to 
> the National Policy on Education on the inclusion
> and teaching of Yoruba 
> language in all institutions of learning, usage of
> Yoruba language for 
> teaching some subjects in secondary schools and the
> teaching of other 
> languages: Hausa and Igbo.
>   It also made a case for the recruitment of Yoruba
> language teachers in all 
> schools, enforcing examination bodies not to award
> certificates to any 
> student that does not register for any indigenous
> languages (Yoruba, Hausa 
> or Igbo), awarding of scholarship to Yoruba
> students, establishment of 
> Yoruba Studies institutions, speaking of Yoruba
> language in Houses of 
> Assembly in all South-Western States.
> 
>
_________________________________________________________________
> Don't just search. Find. Check out the new MSN
> Search! 
> http://search.msn.com/
> 
> 


Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com