Recently, the singer David Adeleke (Davido) was given a global stage to express himself and deliver a message.

 

Sadly, Mr. Adeleke used the opportunity to speak in an American accent. Not only that, but he also used it to talk down on Nigeria, urging the world not to invest in the country because, as he put it, Nigeria’s “economy is in shambles.”

 

Coincidentally, a month after his faux pas, Kemi Badenoch, perhaps inspired by Davido, used her British accent to criticize Nigeria, calling it “a very poor country” where the police rob citizens.

 

Interestingly, the following day, the BBC featured a panel of Conservative Party big shots. One of them, Albie Amankona, a party chieftain from Chiswick and a well-known broadcaster, said—quoting him directly:

“If you are a Brexiteer, and you are saying we need to expand our global trade beyond the European Union and look at emerging markets for growth, don’t slag off one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa.”

 

Isn’t it strange that it took the BBC and a British politician to promote Nigeria as one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies?

 

And just when we thought it was all bad news, God gave us a breath of fresh air in the youthful Ademola Lookman. He used the global platform granted to him by his winning the 2024 African Footballer of the Year award to promote Nigeria and the Lukumi Yoruba language to the world.

 

Wisdom is not by age. Otherwise, Ademola Lookman, who is just twenty-seven, would not have displayed greater wisdom than David Adeleke, who is thirty-two, and Kemi Badenoch, who is forty-four.

 

Mr. Lookman proved that the age of Methuselah has nothing to do with the wisdom of Solomon.

 

It is not as though other ethnic groups with global icons do not promote Nigeria. They do.

 

For example, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala spoke Igbo while addressing the WTO in Geneva. In terms of prestige, she is far above Lookman.

 

My campaign is not for the Lukumi Yoruba alone. It is for all sub-Saharan Black Africans to embrace their native languages and not measure intelligence by proficiency in English or any colonial language.

 

Besides Lukumi Yoruba and Hausa, most Nigerian languages, including Fulfulde, are gradually dying out.

 

General Buhari, for instance, is half Fulani and half Kanuri. Yet, he cannot speak Fulfulde or Kanuri. Instead, he speaks Hausa and English.

 

Fact-check me: In 2012, UNESCO declared Igbo an endangered language.

 

However, the Lukumi Yoruba deserve commendation for their affirmative actions to preserve their language and culture.

 

Let me give you an example: all six governors of the Southwest bear full Lukumi names—Jide Sanwo-Olu, Seyi Makinde, Dapo Abiodun, Ademola Adeleke, Abiodun Oyebanji, and Orighomisan Aiyedatiwa.

 

No other zone in Nigeria has all its governors bearing ethnic Nigerian names as both their first and last names. Elsewhere, many leaders bear Arabic or European first names—or even both names.

 

If we truly want to be the Giant of Africa, we must take deliberate steps to preserve our languages and culture so we can have more children like Ademola Lookman.

 

Teach your children your language before teaching them English. They will learn English in school. Being multilingual is scientifically proven to boost intelligence.

 

Fact-check me: In the U.S., Latino children often do not speak English until they start school. They first learn Spanish at home.

 

Even if you relocate to the UK, the best you can become is British—you can never be English. And if you “Japa” to the U.S., the best you can become is an American citizen—you will never be a White Anglo-Saxon Protestant (WASP).

 

Your power lies in balancing the ancient and modern, Western and African, English (or other colonial languages) and your native tongue.

 

That is the way to reverse language erosion, like the Lukumi Yoruba have done.