It was entitled: “Ejiofor’s Misinfor-mation on Igbo Studies”. Unfortunately, when I looked at the bottom of the article, I did not see the usual explanation as to the professional identity of the author. But from the tone and flow of that article, it was obvious that Nwadike should be some sort of academic.

In a nutshell, the write-up sought to put the lie to former Vice-Chancellor of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Professor Pita Ejiofor’s wildfire evangelistic efforts to draw attention to the fact that the future of the Igbo language, culture and values is seriously threatened.

I first came across Ejiofor on the binge during a conference of Anambra State Professionals in Awka in 2006. He delivered a paper drawing attention to the fact that the language and cultural values of one of Africa’s largest ethnic groups are threatened as a result of their neglect by the Igbo people.

One of his disclosures, which shocked his audience, was that not one single institution of higher learning in Igboland offers Igbo Language as a subject.

By way of contrast, he detailed, from his bulky file, statistics showing that Igbo’s other two rival majority ethnic groups – Hausa and Yoruba – were being actively studied in universities in the northern and western zones of Nigeria, respectively.

He also drew attention to the well-noticed sad fact that many Igbo people - including their illiterate elements - now prefer to speak English or any other language to each other rather than their mother tongue. He ended with his pet slogan: Onye Igbo, suo Igbo.

Nwadike’s write-up clearly sought to disagree with the notion that the Igbo language is under the threat of extinction. Specifically, he went out of his way to point out that Professor Ejiofor’s awareness creation is not only an overkill, but also a little false when it comes to the claim that no institution of higher learning in Igboland offers the language as a subject in its curriculum.

Let me quote him: “we want to make it clear to Ejiofor that all five conventional universities in the South-East: UNN, NAU, IMSU, ABSU and ASU (Anambra State University, Uli) offer Igbo Language, Igbo Literature and Igbo Culture.

The Department of Linguistics, Igbo and Other Nigerian Languages, UNN, runs three degrees: Igbo, Linguistics/Igbo and Linguistics. UNN has produced many first degree, MA and Ph.D candidates in Igbo Studies – Language, Literature and Culture”.

Interesting! If this is true, one then wonders along with Nwadike where Professor Ejiofor got his bulky facts from, which he takes to his “campaign forums.” There certainly is a gap somewhere. When a group I belong to eventually sets up a platform to look into this and other similar issues of interest to the Igbo, the truth shall surely  “out” as Shakespeare would say.

In as much as Nwadike’s article sounds reassuring, it seems to me that he is a little too optimistic about this issue. In further buttressing his contention that the Igbo language is hale and hearty, he wrote: “it is proper to let people know that in order for a language to go extinct, such a language will have no children speakers; such a language will have no youths speaking it; such a language will have as its speakers only adults, such a language will have only a few elderly people left as its speakers. Nowhere in Igboland have we noticed any of these.”

I beg to disagree that “nowhere in Igboland have we noticed any of these”. You will only not notice if you have not taken the effort to observe.

Two Igbo adults walking along the road will likely converse either in English, “English” or “Engl-Igbo”, especially if they do not come from the same dialectal entity.

An Igbo husband and wife from the same dialectal background will likely converse in their dialect. But as soon as they start addressing their children, they’d switch over to English!

This happens irrespective of whether they are resident in Igboland or the Diaspora. Funny enough, even the barely literate ones living in Igboland converse with their children in “English.” Ask Chief Pini Jason and he would tell you his experience on this subject in Owerri in his 17-month sojourn in government.

Now, Nwadike is overlooking the fact that there are more Igbo people living outside the South- East than inside. Even if you have not “noticed any of these” in the South-East, you cannot miss the fact that Igbo children born in the Diaspora are not feeding enough on the language to grow up healthy in it.

A friend of mine once complained to me: “my teenage daughter is incorrigible. I once ordered her to speak to me only in Igbo. She laughed at me: “Haba, Daddy, everytime s’Igbo, s’Igbo”. My friend is happily married to an Ijebu lady.

They live in Lagos, and all his children speak the Yoruba language fluently. This is the situation that obtains almost everywhere you find the Igbo in the world. I have to admit that there are very few exceptional cases.

That there is a big problem of passing the language to the future generation cannot be denied, which makes it imperative for the alarm to be sounded for remedial actions to be taken before it is too late.

Let me draw the attention of Nwadike and those in his over-confident club over something very instructive that took place recently. About three weeks ago, Daar Communications PLC unveiled its pay TV programme. On the day of its launch in Abuja, that became the topic for Gbenga Aruleba’s programme:

Focus Nigeria. Gbenga and three of his colleagues were discussing the various offerings of the bouquet. They disclosed that separate channels have been dedicated to the Hausa and Yoruba languages to run for 24 hours everyday.

They never mentioned anything about an Igbo channel, not even an explanation as to whether there would be such a channel in the future or not and why. To them, there was nothing odd or missing in not mentioning what Daar Satellite Pay TV had for Igbo language!

I made a few inquiries. I learned from a source I had no reason to distrust, that Daar Communications planned to also launch an all-Igbo channel just like its peers in the WAZOBIA fraternity. But “materials” to run the 24/7 channel on a sustainable basis was not available. In other words, a 24/7 Igbo language channel, for now, was not “feasible”.

If this was so, I wondered why Gbenga Aruleba and his group did not see fit to at least explain that the lacuna was not from Daar Communications PLC, but that the ball was really in the court of the Igbo to supply the said “materials” to enable them play like their mates.

I brought out this anecdote to ask the following question: if five universities offer the Igbo language and culture, is it not odd that Daar Communications could not find the people to provide the “materials” for the Igbo channel? Why does Igbo-dominated Nollywood not have Igbo movies? Was it not the epic Igbo movie: Living in Bondage that launched Nollywood to worldwide reckoning?

I also recall that when Professor Ejiofor gave his talk in Awka, some ladies who were teachers got up and accused the government and the Igbo society of not giving graduates of Igbo studies enough recognition and job opportunities to enable them practice their profession. Possibly, the most derided subjects among Igbo students even in my time at school were Igbo and BK (Bible Knowledge!), the very basis of the Igbo society and cosmology.

Compare this with the north where Hausa and Arabic studies are probably valued over the English Language!

A Grand Khadi is on exactly the same scale of privilege as the Chief Judge of a state. If you value yours, it will become so valuable that others will also value it. A typical Igbo man will jump to speak Hausa to impress even his maigad (gateman).

The reverse is usually not the case.
Nwadike and the rest of Igbo have to admit that something is seriously wrong with the Igbo people in their attitude to the only thing they really have which makes them what they are – the Igbo language. Unless a cure is found to that malaise, we may have only two major Nigerian languages 50 years down the line. Even if Professor Ejiofor made mistakes, he ought not to be hacked at as if there is a political difference in play.
But I thank Nwadike for giving me the opportunity to once again, join the fray on this very important matter.

Thank God also that the Imo State Government is putting the Imo Broadcasting Corporation on a worldwide cable platform to broadcast Igbo language, culture and values all over the world. All is not lost.

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