University to make Igbo language compulsory course for all students

University to make Igbo language
compulsory course for all students
on december 29, 2013 at 3:31 pm in news
Prof. Ihechukwu Madubuike, Director, Igbo
Renaissance at the Gregory University, Uturu
(GUU), Abia, said on Saturday that the university
would soon introduce the Igbo language as a
compulsory course in the second year.
Madubuike announced this at Uturu during the 6th
edition of the Igbo (Uturu) Cultural Carnival, which
held at the university.
“By the next two years, the university plans to
introduce the Igbo language as a compulsory
subject for all students in the second year.
“Whether you are Yoruba, Hausa or Efik, you must
take Igbo as a compulsory subject, in spite of your
area of specialisation,’’ he said.
Madubuike described the Igbo language as the
‘’soul of the culture of Ndigbo,’’ adding that the
disappearance of the language would mean the
ultimate death of the culture.
Earlier, the traditional ruler of Oko in Anambra state,
Igwe Laz Ekwueme, called for concerted efforts by
people of the South-East to save the Igbo language
from going extinct.
Ekwueme, who was the chairman of the carnival,
expressed regret that the Igbo language was under
serious threat, due to the decline in its usage as a
means of communication in various families.
He noted that many families of Igbo origin preferred
to communicate in foreign languages, especially the
English language, with their children.
“More often, nowadays, you find many parents
communicating with their children and relations in
the English language, rather than the Igbo
language,’’ he said.
Ekwueme regretted that the development was
capable of endangering the Igbo language, if not
promptly checked.
The monarch, who was a former Minister of
Education, commended the Chancellor of the
University, Dr. Greg Ibe, for initiating the carnival.
“Anything that is done to encourage the sustenance
of the Igbo language and culture would be
encouraged,” he said.
Ekwueme noted that the event would add value to
similar efforts designed to re-establish and
reinforce the Igbo culture.
He urged governors in the zone to rally support
toward the sustenance of the culture and the
language of Ndigbo by identifying with the carnival.
Prof. Barth Chukwuezi, a director in the National
Commission for Museums and Monuments,
expressed delight that the Igbo cultural heritage and
artefacts could be found in abundance in Uturu.
Chukwuezi, who is the Head, Educational Services
and Training, said that the commission often
encouraged the people to communicate in their
native languages during its outreach programmes.
He noted that the Igbo language ranked among the
few native languages in the country facing serious
threats of possible extinction and called for urgent
steps to stem the tide.
“Once a people’s language and culture go extinct,
then the people literally cease to exist,’’ Chukwuezi
said.
He advised parents to encourage the use of the Igbo
language in their homes, as a major means of
communication with their offspring, to save the
language from dying.
The initiator and sponsor of the carnival said that
the objective of the yearly event was to provide a
platform for the transmission of Igbo culture from
one generation to another, among others.
He said that the theme of this year’s carnival: ‘’Ibu
anyi danda’’ (meaning ‘’resilience and the
indomitable spirit’’) of Ndigbo, underscored the
numerous challenges and struggles faced by the
Igbo man.
Ibe noted that God had always rewarded the Igbo
man with huge success in his vocations and
determination to succeed in life.
The Chancellor explained that the ceremony was
organised as ‘’our contribution to the cultural
heritage of mankind‘’.
He described the celebration of a people’s culture
as ‘’the celebration of their history, civilisation and
the totality of their way of life’’.
The lecture on the theme was delivered by a
renowned author and publisher, Mr Chinedum
Ofomata.
Highlights of the ceremony included cultural dances
by various dance groups from 16 states of the
federation.
Different kinds of masquerades, including ‘’Ijele’’
and ‘’Atu’’ from Anambra, took turns to perform at
the event, which attracted a large crowd from within
and outside the country. (NAN)