Former presidential aide Reno Omokri has lamented that all Nigerian languages are dying except Hausa and Yoruba.

This, he attributed to the heavy priority given to the English language over indigenous languages in the country.

To reverse the trend, Omokri advised that one native language should be added to the list of subjects required to gain admission into tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

He wrote on Facebook, "You need a credit in English to be accepted into a Nigerian university, yet English is not a native Nigerian language. Is this discrimination against ourselves? All Nigerian languages, except Hausa and Lukumi Yoruba, are dying out. General Buhari was Fulani, yet could not speak Fulfulde.

"Yes, English is important as a common language for all Nigerians. However, we can have a policy whereby you need at least a credit in mathematics, English, and at least one native Nigerian language as a prerequisite for gaining admission into any Nigerian university, public or private.

"Otherwise, we will wake up one day and every other Nigerian language except Hausa and Lukumi Yoruba will be extinct, as is already happening in South Africa, where four languages are extinct and one is endangered because of the heavy encroachment of the English language.

"It is heresy if we don't use our policy to promote our native faculty."


ASA