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"id": 41536,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/41536/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Kinyanjui",
"speaker_title": "The Assistant Minister for Roads",
"speaker": {
"id": 48,
"legal_name": "Lee Maiyani Kinyanjui",
"slug": "lee-kinyanjui"
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"content": ". In the book, Ngugi argues that during the colonization process, it was not just a question of taking the land but it was also about taking our culture. You know that language is a critical component of our culture. Therefore, when we make our children or our young people feel like knowing Luhyia or Kikuyu is something very criminal, I beg to say that this is the wrong way to go. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, as we talk now, you will remember that for a long time if you wanted to call any African country, you had to call through the exchange in Britain or some other place and then they would connect you maybe to Uganda or the other country. The bottom line was that we could not be able to communicate to our fellow brothers be they Luhyias, Kalenjins or whoever they were. We required the white man to talk to our brothers next door. The greatest impact of colonization is the death of African languages. As we stand here today, I am happy because we have international scholars of Ngugi wa Thiongoâs stature who have said: â I will write in Kikuyu. Anybody who wants to translate it to whatever other language, be it in Russian or German, they can do it.â He has done that and we have a book that is currently being translated into hundreds of languages. It has been said here that for us to promote love and harmony across the country, we must speak one language. Which language is that? That language must be English or Kiswahili. Love exists or resides in the hearts of men and not in the language they communicate in. You can hate a man even when you speak the same language, the same dialect and you come from the same village and the language will not stop you. So, language is a mere expression of what is in the heart. Therefore, as I stand here today, I do agree with the hon. Member that tribalism is, indeed, a cancer in this country. To that extent, I agree with the diagnosis. However, the treatment that you are prescribing for this diagnosis is completely different. A man has come, you have diagnosed him with malaria and you are giving him drugs for other conditions. We agree that it must be on record that we support the diagnosis that we must end tribalism. However, how do we do it? It cannot be through language. If we agree to kill our languages, then we will have gone. Secondly, I want to say that Somalia is one country that might be of importance to some of us. We know they have not had a government and they have fought each other every other day for the last almost 20 years. However, if hon. Members want to remember, they have one language. That one language has not stopped them from hating, killing and maiming one another. So, language cannot make you love your brother if it is not in the heart. Therefore, I also say that we must address issues that are in the hearts of men and women. Secondly, as you may be aware many of our children today are growing up in urban areas because of the increased rural-urban migration. However, as they grow, you are aware that they learn from primary school, secondary school and all the way to the university and they do not know their mother tongue. Tomorrow, in this law that we propose to set up we are not saying that we urge the Government to encourage the use of ethnic languages, but we are asking the Government to ban the use of ethnic languages. This will send a very wrong signal that the Government does not encourage local languages. If you look at Chapter 2 Article 3(a) we are saying:- â(a)The State shall promote and protect the diversity of language of the people of Kenya. (b) The State shall promote the development and use of indigenous languages, Kenyan sign language, Braille and other communication format technologies accessible to persons with disabilities.â Therefore, the Constitution acknowledges that we have various languages that require to be promoted. As I come to an end I wish to remind the hon. Members that we can use the cultural diversity we have to enrich our country. I think this is what we have been saying. We have seen the Maasai community and we believe what they are doing. The way they dress and the way they have held on to their culture is an asset for this country. We have seen what is happening in western Kenya where we have bull fighting headed by my very good friend here. When I go to watch bull fighting, I do not want to watch it in English. I want to watch it in the mother tongue; that is in the first language in which it was spoken. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I encourage our people and our country to respect our languages. Our languages are an expression of who we are and the Government must be in the forefront to encourage this. If this Motion is passed, it would, therefore, mean that even in my constituency, if somebody comes and I understand their language, say Kalenjin, I will be compelled not to speak to them in the language that they understand. If they come and they know Kikuyu and I can understand it, it will be wrong for me to communicate in that language. Therefore, what we are trying to say is that we are actually criminalizing the very same language that we have sought to protect in this Constitution. Therefore, I want to encourage the hon. Member that there are various ways in which we can address the different concerns about tribalism but language cannot be one of them. We have been able to look at it and we have said it in many ways. However, I believe we cannot by any chance agree that we can kill our languages. With those few comments, I also wish to remind our very good colleagues that even people who do not have the gift of speaking can still express love. We have deaf people who cannot speak but they can express love. Therefore, language is not the only mode of expression. Thank you."
}