Gov Diri Supports Ijaw Language App Project

Nelson Utip

Governor  Douye Diri of Bayelsa State has pledged his administration’s support for the newly developed Ijaw Language App code-named Dayama Demo.

He made the commitment on Monday at the Ijaw Language Awareness Summit with the theme: “Reviving The Izon Language: Heritage, Our Identity, Our Future,” at the DSP Alamieyeseigha Memorial Banquet Hall in Yenagoa, as part of activities marking the 30th anniversary of the state’s creation.

The Governor expressed concern that  the language was gradually becoming extinct and called on his kinsmen and all indigenes of Bayelsa State to make conscious effort to revive it in order to preserve their identity as a people for the younger generation.

Diri used the occasion to commend popular Ijaw music act, Asu Ekiye, for convening the summit and for being a true ambassador of the Ijaw nation, saying that  the summit would henceforth be an annual event in the state.

The Governor also lauded a former Commissioner for Ijaw National Affairs in the state, Dr. Felix Tuodolo, Ijaw language presenter, Erema Yanga, among others for ensuring that the Ijaws do not lose their heritage.

He further called on private organisations and individuals to join government in supporting the creative talents that have been at the forefront of promoting the language.

Diri also called on the Ijaw National Congress (INC) to work with government on the Ijaw revival project as well as reactivate the Prof. Kay Williamson Centre at Kaiama in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area.

He directed the Commissioner for Education to ensure that quizzes and debates in Ijaw language were organised in primary and secondary schools in the state while

explaining that the move to resuscitate Ijaw language was started by his predecessor,  Senator Seriake Dickson, in 2018 when Kolokuma dialect was adopted as the official language in the state.

“The responsibility of teaching our children our language lies squarely with parents. So every family should strive to communicate always in their mother tongue.

“My predecessor started the move to revive the language when he sent a bill to the House of Assembly and on February 25, 2018, Kolokuma dialect was adopted as the central language and 200 teachers were recruited to teach the language in every public school.

“This celebration will not end today. It is going to be an annual Izon Language Awareness Day and it will be  anchored in the Ministry of Culture and Ijaw National Affairs.

“Next year, we will have this Ijaw Awareness Day in an open field at the sports complex where all our families, all our mothers and fathers will converge.

“What we are doing today is about the preservation of our language, mode of dressing as well as the cuisine that make up the sum total of our culture and tradition as Ijaws.” Governor Diri said.

Dr. Felix Tuodolo in his keynote address identified challenges affecting the survival of the Ijaw language, noting that parents no longer communicate with their children in their mother tongue.

He further identified the preference for other indigenous languages at the detriment of their mother tongue and the removal of Izon language by the Federal Government as one of the official languages in the country.

Tuodolo urged  Ijaw people to begin to express themselves more in their language at home, ceremonies and other engagements towards preserving their identity.

The Convener of the summit, Asu Ekiye, in his speech  posits that the survival of the language rests on the choices and actions of the people.

He also stated that Ijaw language stands at a critical threshold where its every day usage was declining at an alarming rate, particularly among the younger generation and that the time to act was now.

Ekiye appealed to the state government to make immediate actionable interventions for the formal recognition of the Ijaw Language Resuscitation Initiative and appointment of a state focal unit.

He also recommended the systematic audio-visual documentation of oral histories, songs, proverbs and stories, launch language champions network and school language clubs in pilot communities among others towards resuscitating the language.

Ekiye and his compatriot, Barr. Smooth, received award for promoting the Ijaw language and tradition through music while veteran journalist, Asu Beks, was also honoured in recognition of his contribution to Ijaw values and traditions through the journalism profession.

Artistes that performed at the event included B2S Tare Oge Master, Trace Ailies, Dr. Gesiere Ebizimor-Nicholas, Erema Yanga among others.