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ARE WE DOING ENOUGH TO SAVE OUR LANGUAGE?

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Sir,

Avid readers of this esteemed publication will recall vividly that it was in this very same platform that I wrote, albeit on several occasions, expressing my disappointment on the way our mother tongue is treated in this beautiful tiny Kingdom of eSwatini.


 The fact that we, as Swazis, are struggling to, at least, complete any sentence without using a foreign language is a great cause for concern.
The situation becomes even more complex when it comes to writing the language, and the results are there for everyone to see-our children are shying away from using the language.


Actually, the siSwati language is becoming unpopular among the current generation, and in not-so-distant future we will lose our beloved language if drastic measures are not promptly taken to save the situation. The fact that we are struggling to finish a conversation without using an English word, or worse still, opt to use English throughout our conversations is a testimony that our language is slowly going away.


As much as we have to appreciate the incorporation of English to be among the official languages in the country it is of colossal importance to consider the value of the mother tongue.


As much as we have to use the English language it is imperative to ensure that the mother tongue does not suffer.
There is no doubt that the dominance of English in our society leaves a lot to be desired and it is even worse to note that most Swazis find comfort in communicating in English at the expense of their mother tongue.


And so detrimental is this phenomenon that most of the upcoming generation are dismally failing to fluently speak siSwati language. And the mind boggling question is, what is it that we are not doing right, that has resulted to the current state of affairs? This is a question everyone who calls themselves a Swazi must ask themselves before the worst happens in as far as losing the language is concerned.


Are we really doing enough to save the language? It is high time we do an introspection to ascertain and outline the factors that have immensely contributed to the current situation.  Collective responsibility forms an integral part in our endeavour to restore the mother tongue hence one cannot cease to urge the media, education sector, publishing companies and the ordinary Swazis out there to devise strategies that will give our language the value it deserves.


In essence, I’m also throwing the challenge to the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs and the relevant stakeholders to ensure that the siSwati policy see the light of the day before a lot of damage is done to our beloved language. We cannot afford to sit back and claim as if everything is right whereas we are in danger of losing the language our forefathers restored with pride.

Comfort Jele, Hawane

Comments (1 posted):

bonz on 30/09/2014 10:58:14
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My friend even now I am studying overseas. Let me tell you that our brothers from Tanzania are a laughing stock by not speaking or writing good English just because they love their Swahili so much. Then we have the Kenyan another Swahili speaking country beautiful English. So a Uniswa graduate is expected to speak English fluently not the Tanzania situation.

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