By Christy Anyanwu
To further propagate and encourage the speaking of Igbo language among children and teens of igbo heritage, Ogbako Asusu Igbo (convergence of Igbo language/speakers) Association, Lagos branch, has decided to take further its free long-vacation Igbo coaching classes for children to become regular sessions every holiday.
This was made known by the president of the association, Chief Iyke Ezeh, during the annual end-of-the-year get-together of the group at Anthony Village, Lagos.
Tagged, “Imechi Afo ’22 (End of the Year 2022),” the occasion, which comprised people from the South East and Igbo-speaking Delta and Edo indigenes, had the ambience of culture and tradition at the highest level. The children mesmerized the audience as they recited the National Anthem in Igbo language to kick-start the occasion. The men, dressed purely in traditional attire, portrayed what the occasion was all about: Igbo culture. The Igbo cultural troupe was another highlight of the occasion and, of course, assorted Igbo delicacies, culinary presentations and refreshment were served to add pomp to the celebration.
According to Ezeh, the essence of the organization was to promote Igbo language and, since the United Nations said that English language would become extinct in 20 to 25 years, they thought it wise to teach Igbo children their mother tongue.
“Many of us in Lagos, our children don’t speak Igbo. So, this association was formed to encourage parents to allow their children speak the language fluently.
“Every summer, we bring Igbo teachers to teach children the language, and we now decided to go further by having these Igbo lessons every holiday, even if it’s for two weeks. The first one will start on the 19th of December till the 31st of December. Today is just the end-of-the-year party. You can see the children singing the National Anthem in Igbo language.”
Dr. Patrick Uwakwe, secretary of the association, emphasized another aspect of the occasion: to thank God for preserving their lives.
“In spite of all the challenges in the country, we didn’t lose any of our members. None of our members was involved in any serious accident and we are thanking God for life.
“This is a yearly event, for the past six years. The occasion is for all the Igbo living in Lagos. We started it from Anthony Village. There are people coming from Okota, Ejigbo, Lagos Island and all that,” he said.
Prince Okey Nwosu, an executive member of the association, informed the audience that they operate like brothers under one leadership, irrespective of the state they come from.
He said: “We don’t talk about state here. All we know is that we are Igbo and we behave like Igbo. We don’t say this person is from Anambra or Imo or Enugu State. The import is that we don’t allow our children to get westernized too much; they need to know our own language and traditions so that our language will not go extinct.
“So, we are using the forum to let our children understand that Igbo culture is a very good culture. We try to encourage them to learn the language and be proud they are Igbo and most of our children look forward to holidays.”
Shedding more light on the purpose of the language classes, he further said: “In the past, we took our children on holidays to the village. That is fading away now because you can’t entrust your children to live in the East during long vacation with others because of insecurity. What we do is bring Igbo teachers to keep brushing them up in Igbo language. Then when we get home we still encourage them to speak the language. Even when they are travelling outside the country, they still know our culture and imbibe it in whatever they are doing.”