Ghana Is Ready To Employ Twi Language To Conduct Parliamentary Business

The Republic of Ghana is ready to use its dominant Twi language in addition to English to carry out assignments in the nation’s parliamentary house meetings. This assertion is based on the random sampling of several people in the Greater Accra Region who indicated that they prefer this common language to any other language to be used in debates about important and delicate matters that concern the development and progress of the nation. This result is not strange as it has been observed that those Presidential Candidates who utilized this common language many years ago to do their campaigns found out that people were happy and enthusiastic to listen to them when they used the local language because they found it easy to comprehend. Suddenly, the citizens’ faces became gladdened. With smiles, they stood in the heat of the rain and listened to these favorite politicians who felt comfortable using the language the majority comprehended.

In East Africa, the countries that have successfully used Swahili to conduct parliamentary business (Kenya, Tanzania, Congo, etc.) and communicated regularly to citizens in this local language had discovered that the common language had helped them to reduce tension when any minor conflict had ensued. It has subsequently glued the relationship between the different tribes, notwithstanding minor quarrels continue to take place. Swahili has also helped them with their technological developments and advancement, which East Africa currently appears to have surged ahead since President Obama became President of the United States. In my opinion, East Africa leads in IT and Internet Banking, and this has been possible because of the single local Swahili language. The Presidents of these countries, their cabinet, Parliamentarians, and Parliamentary clerks all utilize this common language in public communication and are well respected at home and abroad.

In Ghana, the Kantanka Group of Companies that were founded by Apostle Engineer Kwadwo Safo had succeeded in generating excellence in the world and speedy technological advancement and development, and the Twi language has been employed to issue names to all their inventions, which has gained attention in the world stage. All teaching and communication are undertaken in the Twi language, and it appears the genius of Africa knew that the success of Ancient Egypt, Ancient Mesopotamia, and Ancient Israel was based upon their employment of this common language. It had aided them in building a superb civilization that later made sure to invent Mathematics and the Sciences—the language of nature.

Presently, many renowned scholars in Ghana and abroad have congratulated the Vice President of Ghana and the Presidential Candidate of the NPP for his copious use of the Twi language in his campaign trips. The Vice President, in particular, has indeed followed the footsteps of famous Ghanaian politicians such as Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Mr. Joe Appiah, Mr. Victor Owusu, and others who also spoke most of the time in Twi during their campaign trips to international dignitaries were present, in which case, they would use the popular language at that period, which was English Language.

Finally, we suggest what we have done previously in our earlier publication that the policy on education must consider the use of this common language that all persons in the country can understand. The Ghanaian people are intelligent and reliable, and it seems only the leadership has not taken this matter seriously. It has taken many years for this realization to come to the fore simply because the nation has experienced turbulence in the citizens' political pursuits for many years ever since we achieved Ghana's independence. Though many changes have been made in connection with the educational policies in the country, these changes in how students imbibe knowledge have not engaged us properly because we usually think of what others in other countries are doing, and we try to imitate them. Ghanaians have not made changes in education concerning how they can become original in developing faster and compete fairly with students elsewhere in the world. Though we can excel as all others in the world, we usually sit there and allow others to impose things on us because we are unsure of ourselves. National education policy should consider first the translation of the major textbooks into the primary, secondary, and tertiary education levels into a common language as the original language. These should preliminarily be employed as aids in classrooms, and later in the future Ghana as a single original language that all instructions in the educational institutions and examinations will be conducted in addition to English. English will be diligently studied as well and can be used at home or abroad when necessary.

BY:
Professor Desmond Ayim-Aboagye and Irene Owusu (MSc Law and Cooperate Adm.)

Regent University College of Science and Technology, Accra, Ghana