There we go. Ghanaians will never learn. They love over-copying too much but they are never the best.
Speak Twi as a national language to make Rockson happy or else he will always make you lose sleep over your crazy fondn ... read full comment
There we go. Ghanaians will never learn. They love over-copying too much but they are never the best.
Speak Twi as a national language to make Rockson happy or else he will always make you lose sleep over your crazy fondness for spoken English.
JOKER 7 years ago
To speak FUCKING TWE or TWI? Is it by force? TWE/TWI? Tweaaaaaaa!!!
To speak FUCKING TWE or TWI? Is it by force? TWE/TWI? Tweaaaaaaa!!!
Okormansa 7 years ago
Even the tweaaaaaa you said is twi,shm.
Even the tweaaaaaa you said is twi,shm.
KUNIBA 7 years ago
Why should we use Twi as a national language?
I think Kasim will be appropriate
Why should we use Twi as a national language?
I think Kasim will be appropriate
Okormansa 7 years ago
The English idiom is 'My Foot' and not my feet. You have problem with the 'Twi Debate' and your English too is crazy, shm.
The English idiom is 'My Foot' and not my feet. You have problem with the 'Twi Debate' and your English too is crazy, shm.
Mr Bond 7 years ago
I can't comprehend how Majority of Ghanaians think.How could you abandon your own language for someone else language?we abandon our language and even also abandon our technology and food.Am not surprise all of our mentality.A ... read full comment
I can't comprehend how Majority of Ghanaians think.How could you abandon your own language for someone else language?we abandon our language and even also abandon our technology and food.Am not surprise all of our mentality.An Ewe wrote TWI national anthem and the Gas and Northerners sing pure and beautiful TWI songs and speak better TWI than those born TWI.but because of stupidity fools claim we should abandon our language.Adofo Rockson,good write up.Bravo!
AUTHENTIC C.Y. ANDY-K 7 years ago
Is this Rockson Adofo aware that the non-Twi languages such as Ewe, Ga, Dagbani, Hausa, etc, are not dialects of Twi?
And btw, the Akans haven't conquered some of us and so can't impose their Twi on us. Period!
My gr ... read full comment
Is this Rockson Adofo aware that the non-Twi languages such as Ewe, Ga, Dagbani, Hausa, etc, are not dialects of Twi?
And btw, the Akans haven't conquered some of us and so can't impose their Twi on us. Period!
My great, great, great grandfather sat at the negotiating table after the Sagrenti War to negotiate for our people to be brought officially into the Gold Coast. The agreement did not include Twi being imposed on them. One of the sons, Torgbui Sri II, was the first chief coopted into the LegCo from the Eastern Province in 1916. When he joined, he could not only speak English but German, French and Spanish, not to mention other West African languages. I have had enough from you ignorant, recently literate and semi-illiterates who were infused into the Gold Coast just in 1946 throwing all your ignorant nonsense around. Parliament is not for uneducated, school drop ups! Her poor English is only the tip of the ice-berg of her total inadequacy to be in Parliament.
Andy-K
Car Thief Adams 7 years ago
Nonsense! Bragging buffoon with a brain of a monkey. This article makes much much sense than your ridiculous rejoinder. With all due respect to your tribe, the great Asante tribe stands really tall above the rest. Even when g ... read full comment
Nonsense! Bragging buffoon with a brain of a monkey. This article makes much much sense than your ridiculous rejoinder. With all due respect to your tribe, the great Asante tribe stands really tall above the rest. Even when great women like Yaa Asantewaa were standing toe to toe with the imperialists, your so-called great great grandfathers were hiding under their bug infested beds. Fool, how dare you speak evil against warmhearted Asantes? Cease your interminable stupidity!
francis kwarteng 7 years ago
Adofo is still sleeping and so I will leave him to sleep.
He will definitely wake up at the right time.
Adofo is still sleeping and so I will leave him to sleep.
He will definitely wake up at the right time.
KAK 7 years ago
Ephraim Amu wrote what you're referring to in Ewe. After that he translated the lyrics to Twi.
Philip Gbeho wrote the original national anthem directly in English. During the Acheampong regime new words were found for the ... read full comment
Ephraim Amu wrote what you're referring to in Ewe. After that he translated the lyrics to Twi.
Philip Gbeho wrote the original national anthem directly in English. During the Acheampong regime new words were found for the original anthem through a national competition. An Ewe student won with the present words of the anthem. It was all in English.
Acheampong's time also brought the national pledge - in English, not in Twi.
Nobody denies that Twi is the foremost local language in Ghana. More and more people are speaking it. But that is not the reason to make it an official language. It can only remain a widely used language but not an official one.
Adofo's argument is not only wrong, it is even very childish. More people speak English in Ghana than speak Twi. It will be a retrograde step to ask people to stop learning and speaking English and concentrate on learning Twi.
English must continue to be our number one language for the simple reason that it will make us develop faster than the use of Twi. We are living in a globalized world in which Twi is unrecognized.
Adofo doesn't like the way some Ghanaians pride themselves with their knowledge of English. But he is proposing the wrong answer to what is in actual fact an individual problem.
PATAPAA TRUMP 7 years ago
Adofo is silly and tribal,what language does he speaks in his hideout in the UK?English is the official language,the language use in parliament to conduct business,had it not been tribal politics Ghanaians find themselves in, ... read full comment
Adofo is silly and tribal,what language does he speaks in his hideout in the UK?English is the official language,the language use in parliament to conduct business,had it not been tribal politics Ghanaians find themselves in,what could have let Ama Sey,a school dropout to be voted to parliament to represent a constituency?What contributions can she be able to help in bringing to her constituency in terms of developments?Nevertheless,she is her people's choice to represent them so if she is able to deliver for her people that is fine and if she fails,it is the problem of the people who elected her to represent them but English must be the spoken official language in the country!
Mr Bond 7 years ago
Who told you TWI is unrecognized in the world.Dumsor has led many people learning TWI.Many white people speak TWI so stop your ignorant.
Who told you TWI is unrecognized in the world.Dumsor has led many people learning TWI.Many white people speak TWI so stop your ignorant.
Omanba kojo 7 years ago
And after 60 years of speaking English, have we developed faster? We r rather retrogressing. To think that a foreign language will make u develop faster is naive. What about those great countries who don't speak English.
And after 60 years of speaking English, have we developed faster? We r rather retrogressing. To think that a foreign language will make u develop faster is naive. What about those great countries who don't speak English.
Constable Joy 7 years ago
OH MR BOND,YOU TOO CAN LEARN AND SING THE SAME NATIONAL ANTHEM IN ANOTHER GHANAIAN LANGUAGE
OH MR BOND,YOU TOO CAN LEARN AND SING THE SAME NATIONAL ANTHEM IN ANOTHER GHANAIAN LANGUAGE
James Bamfo 7 years ago
Adofo, you are now seeing the light. This is one of your best. Well written!
Adofo, you are now seeing the light. This is one of your best. Well written!
AUTHENTIC C.Y. ANDY-K 7 years ago
B'cos you don't have much sense of thinking like him.
Andy-K
B'cos you don't have much sense of thinking like him.
Andy-K
James Bamfo 7 years ago
Primitive superman, welcome back. Or, are you Ral Yarrow?
Primitive superman, welcome back. Or, are you Ral Yarrow?
Car Thief Adams 7 years ago
You never make sense at all. In fact, your irrevocable jealousy beclouds your sense of judgement. As I said elsewhere, this article makes much much sense than your crap rejoinder.re
You never make sense at all. In fact, your irrevocable jealousy beclouds your sense of judgement. As I said elsewhere, this article makes much much sense than your crap rejoinder.re
P Djamgbe 7 years ago
Seeing what light, James? Adofo is endorsing illiteracy and here you are praising him. The NPP call NDC members who have not had the opportunity to study abroad, or who do not have degrees dining hall prefects. And here they ... read full comment
Seeing what light, James? Adofo is endorsing illiteracy and here you are praising him. The NPP call NDC members who have not had the opportunity to study abroad, or who do not have degrees dining hall prefects. And here they are defending and praising a semi-illiterate bush girl just because she is their own. Truth be told, this girl is not even qualified to be an attendant in the parliament house, because a good attendant is someone with language skills - someone who can interact freely and fluently with the representatives and the guests in the house, and the only official language in the house is what?
Asuo. 7 years ago
If english language were not to be the mother tongue of Donald Trump, my goodness...
If english language were not to be the mother tongue of Donald Trump, my goodness...
AUTHENTIC C.Y. ANDY-K 7 years ago
Re. Ghanaians' absurd infatuation with spoken English
I find it necessary to respond to Rockson Adofo’s piece of 16 March 2017
(www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Ghanaians-absurd-infatuation-with-spoken-English-5 ... read full comment
Re. Ghanaians' absurd infatuation with spoken English
I find it necessary to respond to Rockson Adofo’s piece of 16 March 2017
(www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Ghanaians-absurd-infatuation-with-spoken-English-518819) in order to give equal prominence to the rebuttal of his illogical postulations.
A lot of valid points have been made as comments on his piece but I picked on one by Sika as a prop to write my rejoinder. I agree with Sika that those calling for Twi to be made the national language are indeed fools and mere ethnic supremacists. As such, they cannot recognise that Twi is not the mother tongue of the majority of Ghanaians, even though a majority of Ghanaians may be speaking it now. Fact is, they don't even know that the MAJORITY of Ghanaians ARE NOT AKANS! Akans altogether, with their various dialects, with even the Nzemas grouped among them, form the largest ethnic group in Ghana, now comprising about 47% of the population. It used to be 44% but due to the high birth rate or number of children per woman among them than other ethnic groups, their proportion of the population has been steadily increasing. Nevertheless, they don’t constitute an absolute majority in the country as we constantly read or hear from many of them, including the supposedly highly educated who are the main culprits and purveyors of their ethnocentric agenda and claims. The mass of uneducated and less educated among them have no clues about such things anyway, and so don’t their heads about such things.
The same argument Adofo, who has distinguished himself as a bigot too, used to claim that even those foreigners who learn English fluently in England - presumably even those born and bred in the UK and speak only the English language - would never be recognised as English can be used against non-Akans learning to speak Twi too: they’d never be recognised as Akans. To many non-Akans, Twi is just as Greek to them as any other foreign language. They'd certainly prefer to have English, a world language, imposed on them than a parochial language like Twi which has been left stunted since the 1960s, just as other Ghanaians languages whites put into the written form.
Ignorant as he is, he thinks that those who are English today have progeny dating back to posterity, completely failing to recognise that successive invasions from continental Europe, with William the Conqueror being the last, followed by immigrations over the centuries of other Europeans, have led to the English language and the people known as the English. That's why a lot of words in English have Latin, German and Norman/French roots. English today is as much a language created by foreigners mixing with Bretons just as many English people have foreign origins, their very royalty included.
By the way, some African societies developed written languages long before the whites came. Ethiopia stands up tall amongst them. Amharic has been written for 1000s of years. I learned that their form of mathematics is behind the algorithms that form the basis of the computer language. The Nubian script, yet to be deciphered, is even older than the hieroglyphics of ancient Egypt. The ancient Congo Kingdom also had a form of written notations, just as a kingdom in the Cameroons.
Having said that, when some point to those Asian countries and others as using their own languages, they seem to forget that they have had written languages for 1000s of years. Their languages continue to be developed through the active actions of their scholars, adding new words to cover new things. Over the years, one language, usually that of the supreme ruler, assumed dominance over others, just as Mandarin Chinese has done in China.
They may speak officially and teach in schools in their languages but their political leaders are very highly educated people, often very fluent in English, French, Russian and Germans, some having studied abroad. In Ghana, it is only the illiterates, semi-illiterates and the poorly educated people who cannot speak good English. English is therefore a measure of how well a person is educated in Ghana. Laughing at people who don’t speak it fluently is more so a look down upon the less educated, a practice in Ghana which has led to the failure to develop pidgin English as a common medium of communication just like in the other West African English-speaking countries. I consider this as rather unfortunate but it does not mean Ghanaians have an absurd infatuation for English, whereas it can be said more correctly that most Akans have such an absurd infatuation for Twi. In Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone in particular, even those who did not have formal education learn to speak pidgin English fluently when they move to the big towns and cities. Official business is thus conducted strictly in English and practically all the relevant population understand. In Ghana, it has become common practice that government Ministers, public officials, TV and radio presenters speak in Twi at public events with even expatriates in the audience without the benefit of interpreters! This is what is absurd. Is it Twi they are going to use to make Ghana into the Gateway into West Africa, as we often hear top government officials proclaiming? The very poor level of English by even Ghanaian journalists does not put English in Ghana on a pedestal. A host of school leavers from some parts of the country, especially from the Akan areas, could hardly express themselves in English, leading to the Twinisation of Accra-Tema and the airwaves! I doubt if they can even read and write in Twi properly!
I quite recollect an incidence during the Kufour regime period when Papa Ankomah paid his first official visit to the UK when he was appointed majority leader in Parliament. During an interview on one of the Ghanaian FM stations by one Space, he responded that he’d like to answer a question in Fante in order to bring out the gist of the matter, a request which unsettled me. There was so much hype about the man. The whole interview soon turned into Twi. I tuned to my favourite Jazz station, instead of listening further to their kind. It is simply arrogant, crude and insensitive for government officials and TV and radio presenters at national functions to speak in Twi without the benefit of interpretation to non-Twi speakers.
The crass, mediocre thinking that the uneducated can understand and run modern governance systems and institutions is behind allowing a stark illiterate like Akua Donkor to form a political party, with the delusion that she could be President of Ghana. Tweah! No wonder Ken Kuranchie came out of prison and blurted out that Ghanaians were not civilised! Modern governance is not for the unlettered and illiterates.
Former Prime Minister Bathiar imposed Malay as the national language in Malaysia in order to give an advantage to his less educated fellow Malays over the dominant Chinese and Indian migrants. One of the actions he took before his retirement was to re-instate English as a national language and medium of instruction. The Chinese and Indians made sure their children acquired proficiency in English through private tuition or education in America, the UK, India, etc. Instead of their dominance reducing, it rather increased in many respects. They were becoming the partners to the foreign investors. Malay graduates struggle to express themselves in English, just as some who came to invest in Ghana. Others have therefore travelled that unfruitful path before in this increasingly competitive world and found it unworthy of continuing on it. We shall therefore not sit down and allow some uninformed and uneducated people to lead us down a blind alley.
If researches done in other countries under different conditions show that children taught in their mother tongues perform better (I know all about this in Norway), does it mean that teaching Ewe, Ga, Gonja, Grunshie, Konkomba, etc. pupils in Twi will make them to perform better? And if the adoption of one language unites a people, why are the Congolese bumping each other off in millions; the Somalis indulging in brutal slaying of each other, and the Hutus and Tutsis of both Rwanda and Burundi committing genocide on each other since the 1950s? The minority Watutsis have even adopted the language of the majority Hutus. I recollect the story of the only two surviving speakers of a language in Mexico which was about to go extinct not on speaking terms with each other. Language, per se, doesn’t unite or bring peace between people, or there won’t be so much intra-family quarrels. In fact, we may observe negative correlation.
Can that woman even read and write Twi so that she can read translated legislation in Twi? And some want interpreters to be employed for her, thus adding to the bloated cost of running Parliament. Look, it is a pure anomaly that she is in Parliament. It sends the wrong message to young people that one can drop out of school, as she did, and even become an MP in Ghana!
We in the FTOS Campaign for the adoption of the Production Sharing Agreement formula for Ghana’s upstream oil contracts have got Masters and PhD holders reading our articles and frankly confessing that they could NOT offer informed opinions because the field of oil contracts is not their areas of specialisation, and we have people defending this school drop-out as fit to be MP and calling for Twi to be imposed on Ghana in order to accommodate uneducated Akans in the governance system, as if the incompetence and mediocrity we have in the state institutions are not pervasive and damaging enough. Let them operate at the district level then, as I knew Akua Donkor was advised to continue doing but she was misled by some people interested in swindling her to go and form a party. As if that is not enough, some even robbed the poor, naive woman at gun point!
We have had enough of this nonsense about adopting Twi as the official, national language in Ghana. It is ill-informed. We need an African language policy as one Prof. Prah suggested decades back but the discussion of that is beyond this rejoinder.
Andy C. Y. Kwawukume
cyandyk@ymail.com
Car Thief Adams 7 years ago
Just piss off! Braggart! For your information, there are much much better educated EWE men and women than you, but those refined intellectuals do not brag as you do. So, do you really think you possess superior power of the m ... read full comment
Just piss off! Braggart! For your information, there are much much better educated EWE men and women than you, but those refined intellectuals do not brag as you do. So, do you really think you possess superior power of the mind? You are indeed having a laugh! You are only a miseducated buffoon.
GYAMFI 7 years ago
Ghanaians don't like anything in Ghana. Now they want to change their money to dollars white mans currency. Now most hotels charge in dollars, what is wrong with the cedis?
Ghanaians don't like anything in Ghana. Now they want to change their money to dollars white mans currency. Now most hotels charge in dollars, what is wrong with the cedis?
more 7 years ago
that why cedi is falling we imports everything man do you know switzerland the ricchest country in europe has four offical language French,german ,italian and roman, franch make up 24% german 60% italian 10% and roman 1.5% bu ... read full comment
that why cedi is falling we imports everything man do you know switzerland the ricchest country in europe has four offical language French,german ,italian and roman, franch make up 24% german 60% italian 10% and roman 1.5% but romans is a official language in belguim that i live has 3 official languages and they are far far devlelop than Ghana and all of africa ghanians think english is the one that bind all tribes no it is twi it bring us close if we meet ourselve in europe and america in 2017 most people can speak a liltle english. the only thing that can help us is if we go into federation then every region can use his language for education in belguim it was done in 1970 to use 3 languages now the dutch and german part is more develop than the French part even thou the French has been the ruling class sinds 1830 let fight for federation then gas can have Accra volta for ewes and northern region for themselves ust like belguim now the French are taking dutch classes to work in the dutch regions while the French are lazy bums dont worry they will learn if we go into federation because they will still troop to our cities for jobs as the French are doing in belguim even thou they had a head start sinds 1830
Constable Joy 7 years ago
YOU WRONG.KWAME NKRUMAH SAID,EACH AND EVZRY GHANAIAN WHEREVER YOU ARE LEARN THAT LANGUAGE AND SPEAK AT LEAST TWO(2).
THIS SHOULD HAD HAVE HELPED US TO HAVE SOME MAJOR OFFICIAL LANGUAGES INCLUDING ENGLISH AS PRINCIPAL.
BUT S ... read full comment
YOU WRONG.KWAME NKRUMAH SAID,EACH AND EVZRY GHANAIAN WHEREVER YOU ARE LEARN THAT LANGUAGE AND SPEAK AT LEAST TWO(2).
THIS SHOULD HAD HAVE HELPED US TO HAVE SOME MAJOR OFFICIAL LANGUAGES INCLUDING ENGLISH AS PRINCIPAL.
BUT SOME/CERTAIN SETTLERS TURNED A DEAF EAR.
YAW 7 years ago
Rockson,kindly stop your infatuation with written English and write in Twi. You sit in some pokey or dismal hovel in London churning out a fat lot of bollocks!
The use of "English" in the United Kingdom is through custom rat ... read full comment
Rockson,kindly stop your infatuation with written English and write in Twi. You sit in some pokey or dismal hovel in London churning out a fat lot of bollocks!
The use of "English" in the United Kingdom is through custom rather than constitution just as "Twi" in Ghana.To impose it will lead to Rwanda-style resentment. The Scots and other constituents parts of the UK adapted to the English language. It was never imposed on them. The only imposition is the "Act of 1838" in the house of commons that stipulated that English should be the sole language spoken in the house of commons. And, all court summons issued in the UK must be in English.We do not want "Twi" as the sole language in our parliament in Ghana.The array of nonsense on radio is bad enough.
ABBA, the famous Swedish band conquered the world through English rather than their own limited national language and they are proud of that.
Bye the way, Queen Victoria"s German born mother did not speak English.Queen Victoria"s mother tongue was German. Her father died when she was less than two years old. So,your mother tongue nonsense falls flat.
The only advantage "Chinese" posses over other languages is that it can be read everywhere. Chinese is not really a language at all,but more a family of
loosely related dialects. A person from Fukein can no more understand the speech of the person of Shangai than Kumawu born and bred can understand what people are saying in Yammousokro.
It is vital to note that although the person from Fukien could not talk to anyone from Canton,he/she could easily read their newspaper or books because the written language is the same everywhere. Chinese can read literature of 3000 years ago as easily as today"s papers even though the spoken language has changed beyond recognition.
Martin Schulz who is challenging Angela Merkel left school at 18 yet as an autodidact he rose to become the president of the European Union.
We do not want illiterates in our parliament. Fullstop!
francis kwarteng 7 years ago
Namesake,
I don't know when this sleeping Adofo will wake up.
Namesake,
I don't know when this sleeping Adofo will wake up.
Adwoa London 7 years ago
What does this man understand as globalization? Are we going to negotiate our trade deals in Twi?What about our curriculum and text books? What about other languages and dialects should we abandon these and start learning Twi ... read full comment
What does this man understand as globalization? Are we going to negotiate our trade deals in Twi?What about our curriculum and text books? What about other languages and dialects should we abandon these and start learning Twi?
I live and work as a qualified primary school Teacher in London and have seen the consequences of my fellow Ghananians who do not speak and write English properly.Their children tend to be behind their counter parts. The parents are in menial jobs.Most Ghananians who get on in terms of good jobs are those who have the good command of English language in both written and spoken
.This writer should rather advocate the teaching of good written and spoken English. It makes me sad when I hear my fellow Ghanaians mispronounced digraph th as de.YES we need good English with accent or not let's keep our languages and dialects and stop imposing Twi on us.
Yaw Asante 7 years ago
This Adodo guy is just an educated illiterate. Kennedy has exposed crime, so Twi should become a national language? What sensible laws has Kennedy crafted and promoted? Maybe because laws are not crated in Twi. ????????????? ... read full comment
This Adodo guy is just an educated illiterate. Kennedy has exposed crime, so Twi should become a national language? What sensible laws has Kennedy crafted and promoted? Maybe because laws are not crated in Twi. ????????????????????. What a fool you are.
LAMBERT A-USAH 7 years ago
The overwhelming issue in Ghana here is the inportation of even toothpick. You're rather bothering us with official languages.when the late prof-Mills made a mistake of "economy" where were you? Now bcoz of a common mp, we sh ... read full comment
The overwhelming issue in Ghana here is the inportation of even toothpick. You're rather bothering us with official languages.when the late prof-Mills made a mistake of "economy" where were you? Now bcoz of a common mp, we should change our official language....maybe i should understand the angle in which you are coming 4rom. Can she write in ur said language?? Or we are going to be drawing at parliament. My brother, she wasn't addressing peoples 4rom Leicester and therefore, should have known better. "If u blame the cat of stealing ur meat, then u equally blame ur meat of smelling" so she shouldn't be left out of ur blames. Ur calling for is below the belt since u couldn't write in ur said language. CITIZEN NOT A SPECTATOR
Pkayy 7 years ago
Still no sense in this write up just for the fact that the writer has carefully written in the queens language whereas he could write in any if our local dilect.dat one too not be blind copying?its sad when we make mockery of ... read full comment
Still no sense in this write up just for the fact that the writer has carefully written in the queens language whereas he could write in any if our local dilect.dat one too not be blind copying?its sad when we make mockery of people with these challenges though bt the writers argument here seems to contradict his intended purpose.... This is even evident dat the woman might nt be able too read too well too.moreover u seek to score some useless political point the moment i read the thing in political colors
AKRANTIE BINI EATER 7 years ago
Adofo, your head is full of SHIT, you RAT SHIT EATER!!!
Adofo, your head is full of SHIT, you RAT SHIT EATER!!!
Kwami US 7 years ago
Adofo should begin to write his articles in TWI and we will see how many Akan speaking people will patronize and read them
Adofo should begin to write his articles in TWI and we will see how many Akan speaking people will patronize and read them
Kojo Ghana 7 years ago
Rockson you're educated illiterate ! From now on try and write every article in "Twi" charity begins at home
Rockson you're educated illiterate ! From now on try and write every article in "Twi" charity begins at home
Obrempong 111 7 years ago
In the first Parliament of the forth republic, there was a member of parliament who was a complete illiterate. Check the records.
In the first Parliament of the forth republic, there was a member of parliament who was a complete illiterate. Check the records.
ASANTE IMPERIALISTS 7 years ago
Non-Akans DONT want to speak TWE/TWI. Is it by FORCE? Fuck off with this FUCKING TWE or TWI or whatever.
It is all ASANTE IMPERIALISM packaged in the name of "African Culture and Black man redemption.
FUCK TWE or TWI or w ... read full comment
Non-Akans DONT want to speak TWE/TWI. Is it by FORCE? Fuck off with this FUCKING TWE or TWI or whatever.
It is all ASANTE IMPERIALISM packaged in the name of "African Culture and Black man redemption.
FUCK TWE or TWI or whatever you wanna call it!!!
Stone 7 years ago
pls, stop wasting our ears, why are you not writing Ghanaian language like Two Fante Ewe Dagomba etc?
What is wrong is always wrong, no matter how you try to make it good.
pls, stop wasting our ears, why are you not writing Ghanaian language like Two Fante Ewe Dagomba etc?
What is wrong is always wrong, no matter how you try to make it good.
Billionaire 7 years ago
In fact Ghana has a problem. The whole of East Africa (Tanzania) speak Swahili. Yes l agree with Rockson. Frankly speaking, after English, Twi is the next most widely spoken language in Ghana. Twi is our second language wheth ... read full comment
In fact Ghana has a problem. The whole of East Africa (Tanzania) speak Swahili. Yes l agree with Rockson. Frankly speaking, after English, Twi is the next most widely spoken language in Ghana. Twi is our second language whether we like it or not because at the hinterlands, you get people who speak it. I am Builsa from Sandema and l have been to almost every corner of this country. That's my experience in this country as to which local language is to be national language. Thank you.
Strong man 7 years ago
Stop this stupidity. You have not yet finished with the trouble laden free SHS and here you are bam, make twi official language. Why are you so egoistical? Each time we want to rest there is going to be you coming out with s ... read full comment
Stop this stupidity. You have not yet finished with the trouble laden free SHS and here you are bam, make twi official language. Why are you so egoistical? Each time we want to rest there is going to be you coming out with stomach - talks only praising your twi counterparts while making frantic efforts to discredit good people like Haruna Iddrisu. When are you going to learn that your govt is going to be more corrupt than Mahama's govt ?
akwasi 7 years ago
The lady trying to say something. ..but she should understand that twi (asanti) is among the nine Akan language mostly speak in Ghana.so therefore she should rather say Akan language.
The lady trying to say something. ..but she should understand that twi (asanti) is among the nine Akan language mostly speak in Ghana.so therefore she should rather say Akan language.
k.B Sarpong 7 years ago
Struggling over this issue of a national language is a sign of lost focus, lack of vision and pride, and I can assure you that our chances of prevailing will always diminish because we don't actually know what is good for us ... read full comment
Struggling over this issue of a national language is a sign of lost focus, lack of vision and pride, and I can assure you that our chances of prevailing will always diminish because we don't actually know what is good for us as a country, cast your mind back and consider some of the people Dr Nkrumah worked with, eg DC Kwame Kwaakye, Kroba Adusei etc, but because these people had tacit knowledge irrespective of education they were able to produce good results. The Bible says lack of knowledge my people perish
Nicholas Kyeretwie 7 years ago
Ghana where are we going.We no no where we dey go.We choose English to be our official language and it will be difficult if not impossible to change it at this time.But we should allow people to express themselves in any loca ... read full comment
Ghana where are we going.We no no where we dey go.We choose English to be our official language and it will be difficult if not impossible to change it at this time.But we should allow people to express themselves in any local language wherever they are. In the law courts,parliament etc.The people of Akwatia voted for this lady knowing well who she is.
Nicholas Kyeretwie 7 years ago
No and No.No language is superior or better than any one.All were the work of the Almighty.Please we should not promote any language above the other.Amend the constitution so that any body can go to parliament and speak the l ... read full comment
No and No.No language is superior or better than any one.All were the work of the Almighty.Please we should not promote any language above the other.Amend the constitution so that any body can go to parliament and speak the language she or he understand well be it Ga,Frafra,Dagbani,Nzema etc etc
HE REIGNS 7 years ago
I dont agree or disagree with you but permit me to clarify issues here. Wisdom is relatively embedded in all languages in this world. I speak and write Twi 80% but i will be blocked and cut off the world of innovations and in ... read full comment
I dont agree or disagree with you but permit me to clarify issues here. Wisdom is relatively embedded in all languages in this world. I speak and write Twi 80% but i will be blocked and cut off the world of innovations and invention if i dont switch to English, French, Dutch, spanish and what have you. Lets aim high with love because those ahead are ready to help us. Ignore those who laugh at you when u err even we make mistakes in speaking the local dialects. Forward ever!!
Kinjoe 7 years ago
this article has completely changed my mentality about national language. I couldn't agree more with you. I used to have this backward mentality that how can twi be used as national language when we have many dialects in ... read full comment
this article has completely changed my mentality about national language. I couldn't agree more with you. I used to have this backward mentality that how can twi be used as national language when we have many dialects in Ghana and always claiming to be proud of my language (of course am proud) but this could even prevent tribal wars especially in northern part of Ghana.
ST. SIMPLE 7 years ago
Am actually infatuated with the facts and the truth in your write up! Am praying our parliamentarians will consider this. My fellow country men the Akans are not trying to impose the twi on other tribes but let's be honest wi ... read full comment
Am actually infatuated with the facts and the truth in your write up! Am praying our parliamentarians will consider this. My fellow country men the Akans are not trying to impose the twi on other tribes but let's be honest with ourselves as one people . The dominant language is twi and it must be considered.
Thom 7 years ago
Why am I surprise at this article? you should have written it in local language to back your argument but instead, you wrote in the very language you are trying hard to downplay. If may ask again, which of the local language ... read full comment
Why am I surprise at this article? you should have written it in local language to back your argument but instead, you wrote in the very language you are trying hard to downplay. If may ask again, which of the local language do you suggest we use, and why? After all, who wouldn't want his local dialect to be used as official language in Ghana.
DI ASEM PA 7 years ago
Only stupid Ghanaians think English is everything to them. Over 60 years of independent our mind are still in slavery. Even now, English is taking over our churches. All the big churches speak only English. And these pastors ... read full comment
Only stupid Ghanaians think English is everything to them. Over 60 years of independent our mind are still in slavery. Even now, English is taking over our churches. All the big churches speak only English. And these pastors even call the pastors who speak our own language illiterate. I see English as any other language. It doesn't make someone a sensible or intelligent. Living in a white community has thought me something. We wasted years in school for nothing, instead of learning how to create and build something. I don't know what our scholas have achieved for Ghana yet. They are still far behind. We can do better with our own language. That's why I'm proud with Ashanties. They are proud of their own language. And they are doing well with their own language.
KK 7 years ago
Twi is dominant because Akans are largely illiterate and have low IQ, hence, find it difficult to learn any other language, let alone speak it well. That is the only reason why Twi is popular. Can you imagine I met a Kumasian ... read full comment
Twi is dominant because Akans are largely illiterate and have low IQ, hence, find it difficult to learn any other language, let alone speak it well. That is the only reason why Twi is popular. Can you imagine I met a Kumasiano boy on the Togo/Benin border trying to speak Twi to the border guards? He thought he was still in Amakom, his comfort zone. Every Ghanaian should try to learn another local language aside his/her own and we will be getting somewhere. You do not expect one village guy who just dropped from Agona Swedru to James Town to go disturbing an old lady sitting in the comfort of her home in Twi just to ask for directions to the next public toilet? If you go to Rome, do what the Romans do, or? Our Akan brothers should grow up and aspire for civilisation and stop this myopic, infantile, ill-informed primitivity. Ghana deserves better!
Abigail 7 years ago
I think the writer is a young man. This issue of Twi becoming a national language had been an issue before but it never worked and will not work.
The Lady MP knew her spoken English will be on the Parliament floor. I humbly ... read full comment
I think the writer is a young man. This issue of Twi becoming a national language had been an issue before but it never worked and will not work.
The Lady MP knew her spoken English will be on the Parliament floor. I humbly advise her to go back to polish herself. She should speak English a lot read story books and even write essays. She should get a mentor to take her through this journey otherwise it will be very embarrassing for her anytime she makes the attempt to talk in parliament.
The writer of this article made very good points but he should also encourage the speaking of the English language by people who have certain national ambitions.
Kay 7 years ago
The writer is a 62 year old fart who has been living in London for more than 30 something years! Got it!
The writer is a 62 year old fart who has been living in London for more than 30 something years! Got it!
Wilson pak 7 years ago
You are sick in the head ,twi be made national language in Ghana, we would have divided Ghana into two.stupid Ashanti nationalist ,your analysis is intellectually flawed.
You are sick in the head ,twi be made national language in Ghana, we would have divided Ghana into two.stupid Ashanti nationalist ,your analysis is intellectually flawed.
Godwin Kay 7 years ago
So you think electing illiterates is the best way to go, Go on and encourage that, if mp don't expose wrong doing it means they can't speak good Twi.
So you think electing illiterates is the best way to go, Go on and encourage that, if mp don't expose wrong doing it means they can't speak good Twi.
Kofi sarfo 7 years ago
I strongly support you,we need to do this at all cost,
In fact all banks don't speak English when that are talking to their customers,most listing Radio station in Ghana is peace FM .so what are we talking about. We need ch ... read full comment
I strongly support you,we need to do this at all cost,
In fact all banks don't speak English when that are talking to their customers,most listing Radio station in Ghana is peace FM .so what are we talking about. We need change in that direction?
Amanshianyebi Okoe 7 years ago
Adofo, well written but I would expect you to have written your piece in Twi to buttress your point. You failed me as you wrote in English. Please start this crusade and write in Twi.
Adofo, well written but I would expect you to have written your piece in Twi to buttress your point. You failed me as you wrote in English. Please start this crusade and write in Twi.
Paa Kwesisika 7 years ago
Hip hip hip; hurray. Let's go for it. Twi all the way. I mean, with all due respect, the writer is absolutely right. All the other dialects are equally important to be maintained but the Twi as a matter of fact is the most d ... read full comment
Hip hip hip; hurray. Let's go for it. Twi all the way. I mean, with all due respect, the writer is absolutely right. All the other dialects are equally important to be maintained but the Twi as a matter of fact is the most dominant and popular. Nationals from south America are seriously making Spanish a very dominant dialect in the United States today. When you speak to them in English, they reply you with Spanish. I totally agree with the writer. Substance or fluency in English, which one will be of great help to us? My understanding of her script is NOT to abolish the English language at all.
Kojo kan 7 years ago
She could have chosen to speak her local language, she created the impression that she was competent in spoken English but disappointed her listeners. Instead of advising her, you chose to change the behaviour of a whole nati ... read full comment
She could have chosen to speak her local language, she created the impression that she was competent in spoken English but disappointed her listeners. Instead of advising her, you chose to change the behaviour of a whole nation. What a waste of time and energy!
Ohene Fredua 7 years ago
Mr Adofo,
Drop your English Rockson name and we will start the conversation in the right context.
East Africans use a lingua Franca Swahili in place of their many ethnic tongues which is gradually dying albeit slowly.But th ... read full comment
Mr Adofo,
Drop your English Rockson name and we will start the conversation in the right context.
East Africans use a lingua Franca Swahili in place of their many ethnic tongues which is gradually dying albeit slowly.But the question to ask is if TheTwi language is chosen as the lingua franca what happens to the rest of the local languages?
My take is this :
Allow local languages in Parliament and train translators to translate same.
If and when the municipal government is enacted by all means allow the dominant language to be used in government deliberations.
After all the chiefs use and have been using their mother tongues to govern their citizens
Language is not the sole unifier of people.If it was the Hutus and Tutsis will not be at each others throat.
Civil wars through out history was not fought over language but over simple things as respect for each other,etc
Your God given language is the one determinant of who you are and must be respected and preserve.
SHAMO 7 years ago
WHAT IS WRONG WITH A GHANAIAN WOMAN NOT SPEAKING ENGLISH, BUT I HAVE A QUESTION FOR THE MEN, WHAT ABOUT OF SHE GIVE HER SELF TO YOU, OR TAKE CARE OF YOU WITH HER RICHES, WILL YOU ASPECT HER,WITHOUT SPEAKING ENGLISH, THINK TWI ... read full comment
WHAT IS WRONG WITH A GHANAIAN WOMAN NOT SPEAKING ENGLISH, BUT I HAVE A QUESTION FOR THE MEN, WHAT ABOUT OF SHE GIVE HER SELF TO YOU, OR TAKE CARE OF YOU WITH HER RICHES, WILL YOU ASPECT HER,WITHOUT SPEAKING ENGLISH, THINK TWICE BEFORE YOU TALK , TOGETHER WE STAND WITH OUR WOMEN AND GIRLS
Cletus 7 years ago
Is this a research, an appeal, politics, rebutal or schezephrenia?
Is this a research, an appeal, politics, rebutal or schezephrenia?
prof 7 years ago
So u want us to use twi as a national language? That will never happen in Ghana as far as am concern.what kind of foolish and barbaric thinking is that? I once was in Kumasi n l spoke to one woman in English who asked me whic ... read full comment
So u want us to use twi as a national language? That will never happen in Ghana as far as am concern.what kind of foolish and barbaric thinking is that? I once was in Kumasi n l spoke to one woman in English who asked me which country am from and couldn't speak English? Which means if u don't understand twi u r not Ghanaian? With this kind of Ashanti's looking down upon every tribe l will never support ur idea.Let's stick to English period.
YAW 7 years ago
Rockson, what do you say to this stunning success of our own beloved sister? You can translate her work into Twi for the benefit of "Twi" speakers.
Meet Yaa Gyasi, the young author with a $1-million debut novel
Who? Yaa ... read full comment
Rockson, what do you say to this stunning success of our own beloved sister? You can translate her work into Twi for the benefit of "Twi" speakers.
Meet Yaa Gyasi, the young author with a $1-million debut novel
Who? Yaa Gyasi is the Ghanaian-American author of Homegoing – the slavery tale that US Vogue claims ‘reimagines the American novel’ and has earned the 27-year-old a $1-million advance.
What’s her story? English graduate Yaa – whose first story aged seven was called Just Me and My Dog – says she was inspired to write Homegoing while on a trip to her mother’s hometown in Ghana in 2009 (her family moved to the US when she was two so that her father could complete his PhD). It was on a tour of the former slave-trading fort Cape Coast Castle – ‘going from the grandeur of upstairs where the slave traders worked to the dungeons below’ – that she realised what she wanted to write about: ‘The idea of placing two people together; the wife of someone above and one of the slaves below.’
Page-turner The riveting result seamlessly traces events over eight generations and two countries. ‘I hope it shows that much of what we’re dealing with [the legacy of slavery] didn’t appear out of nowhere,’ she says. ‘When you see things that are happening today, remember to put them in the context of history.’
Yaa describes the acclaim that bestseller Homegoing has received as ‘completely overwhelming’. Her highlight? The novel is inspiring readers to dig into their own family history. ‘That response from people is really cool.’
Next up? She’s hard at work on her next novel – when she can find time to write. ‘I’ve never been this busy before.’
There we go. Ghanaians will never learn. They love over-copying too much but they are never the best.
Speak Twi as a national language to make Rockson happy or else he will always make you lose sleep over your crazy fondn ...
read full comment
To speak FUCKING TWE or TWI? Is it by force? TWE/TWI? Tweaaaaaaa!!!
Even the tweaaaaaa you said is twi,shm.
Why should we use Twi as a national language?
I think Kasim will be appropriate
The English idiom is 'My Foot' and not my feet. You have problem with the 'Twi Debate' and your English too is crazy, shm.
I can't comprehend how Majority of Ghanaians think.How could you abandon your own language for someone else language?we abandon our language and even also abandon our technology and food.Am not surprise all of our mentality.A ...
read full comment
Is this Rockson Adofo aware that the non-Twi languages such as Ewe, Ga, Dagbani, Hausa, etc, are not dialects of Twi?
And btw, the Akans haven't conquered some of us and so can't impose their Twi on us. Period!
My gr ...
read full comment
Nonsense! Bragging buffoon with a brain of a monkey. This article makes much much sense than your ridiculous rejoinder. With all due respect to your tribe, the great Asante tribe stands really tall above the rest. Even when g ...
read full comment
Adofo is still sleeping and so I will leave him to sleep.
He will definitely wake up at the right time.
Ephraim Amu wrote what you're referring to in Ewe. After that he translated the lyrics to Twi.
Philip Gbeho wrote the original national anthem directly in English. During the Acheampong regime new words were found for the ...
read full comment
Adofo is silly and tribal,what language does he speaks in his hideout in the UK?English is the official language,the language use in parliament to conduct business,had it not been tribal politics Ghanaians find themselves in, ...
read full comment
Who told you TWI is unrecognized in the world.Dumsor has led many people learning TWI.Many white people speak TWI so stop your ignorant.
And after 60 years of speaking English, have we developed faster? We r rather retrogressing. To think that a foreign language will make u develop faster is naive. What about those great countries who don't speak English.
OH MR BOND,YOU TOO CAN LEARN AND SING THE SAME NATIONAL ANTHEM IN ANOTHER GHANAIAN LANGUAGE
Adofo, you are now seeing the light. This is one of your best. Well written!
B'cos you don't have much sense of thinking like him.
Andy-K
Primitive superman, welcome back. Or, are you Ral Yarrow?
You never make sense at all. In fact, your irrevocable jealousy beclouds your sense of judgement. As I said elsewhere, this article makes much much sense than your crap rejoinder.re
Seeing what light, James? Adofo is endorsing illiteracy and here you are praising him. The NPP call NDC members who have not had the opportunity to study abroad, or who do not have degrees dining hall prefects. And here they ...
read full comment
If english language were not to be the mother tongue of Donald Trump, my goodness...
Re. Ghanaians' absurd infatuation with spoken English
I find it necessary to respond to Rockson Adofo’s piece of 16 March 2017
(www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Ghanaians-absurd-infatuation-with-spoken-English-5 ...
read full comment
Just piss off! Braggart! For your information, there are much much better educated EWE men and women than you, but those refined intellectuals do not brag as you do. So, do you really think you possess superior power of the m ...
read full comment
Ghanaians don't like anything in Ghana. Now they want to change their money to dollars white mans currency. Now most hotels charge in dollars, what is wrong with the cedis?
that why cedi is falling we imports everything man do you know switzerland the ricchest country in europe has four offical language French,german ,italian and roman, franch make up 24% german 60% italian 10% and roman 1.5% bu ...
read full comment
YOU WRONG.KWAME NKRUMAH SAID,EACH AND EVZRY GHANAIAN WHEREVER YOU ARE LEARN THAT LANGUAGE AND SPEAK AT LEAST TWO(2).
THIS SHOULD HAD HAVE HELPED US TO HAVE SOME MAJOR OFFICIAL LANGUAGES INCLUDING ENGLISH AS PRINCIPAL.
BUT S ...
read full comment
Rockson,kindly stop your infatuation with written English and write in Twi. You sit in some pokey or dismal hovel in London churning out a fat lot of bollocks!
The use of "English" in the United Kingdom is through custom rat ...
read full comment
Namesake,
I don't know when this sleeping Adofo will wake up.
What does this man understand as globalization? Are we going to negotiate our trade deals in Twi?What about our curriculum and text books? What about other languages and dialects should we abandon these and start learning Twi ...
read full comment
This Adodo guy is just an educated illiterate. Kennedy has exposed crime, so Twi should become a national language? What sensible laws has Kennedy crafted and promoted? Maybe because laws are not crated in Twi. ????????????? ...
read full comment
The overwhelming issue in Ghana here is the inportation of even toothpick. You're rather bothering us with official languages.when the late prof-Mills made a mistake of "economy" where were you? Now bcoz of a common mp, we sh ...
read full comment
Still no sense in this write up just for the fact that the writer has carefully written in the queens language whereas he could write in any if our local dilect.dat one too not be blind copying?its sad when we make mockery of ...
read full comment
Adofo, your head is full of SHIT, you RAT SHIT EATER!!!
Adofo should begin to write his articles in TWI and we will see how many Akan speaking people will patronize and read them
Rockson you're educated illiterate ! From now on try and write every article in "Twi" charity begins at home
In the first Parliament of the forth republic, there was a member of parliament who was a complete illiterate. Check the records.
Non-Akans DONT want to speak TWE/TWI. Is it by FORCE? Fuck off with this FUCKING TWE or TWI or whatever.
It is all ASANTE IMPERIALISM packaged in the name of "African Culture and Black man redemption.
FUCK TWE or TWI or w ...
read full comment
pls, stop wasting our ears, why are you not writing Ghanaian language like Two Fante Ewe Dagomba etc?
What is wrong is always wrong, no matter how you try to make it good.
In fact Ghana has a problem. The whole of East Africa (Tanzania) speak Swahili. Yes l agree with Rockson. Frankly speaking, after English, Twi is the next most widely spoken language in Ghana. Twi is our second language wheth ...
read full comment
Stop this stupidity. You have not yet finished with the trouble laden free SHS and here you are bam, make twi official language. Why are you so egoistical? Each time we want to rest there is going to be you coming out with s ...
read full comment
The lady trying to say something. ..but she should understand that twi (asanti) is among the nine Akan language mostly speak in Ghana.so therefore she should rather say Akan language.
Struggling over this issue of a national language is a sign of lost focus, lack of vision and pride, and I can assure you that our chances of prevailing will always diminish because we don't actually know what is good for us ...
read full comment
Ghana where are we going.We no no where we dey go.We choose English to be our official language and it will be difficult if not impossible to change it at this time.But we should allow people to express themselves in any loca ...
read full comment
No and No.No language is superior or better than any one.All were the work of the Almighty.Please we should not promote any language above the other.Amend the constitution so that any body can go to parliament and speak the l ...
read full comment
I dont agree or disagree with you but permit me to clarify issues here. Wisdom is relatively embedded in all languages in this world. I speak and write Twi 80% but i will be blocked and cut off the world of innovations and in ...
read full comment
this article has completely changed my mentality about national language. I couldn't agree more with you. I used to have this backward mentality that how can twi be used as national language when we have many dialects in ...
read full comment
Am actually infatuated with the facts and the truth in your write up! Am praying our parliamentarians will consider this. My fellow country men the Akans are not trying to impose the twi on other tribes but let's be honest wi ...
read full comment
Why am I surprise at this article? you should have written it in local language to back your argument but instead, you wrote in the very language you are trying hard to downplay. If may ask again, which of the local language ...
read full comment
Only stupid Ghanaians think English is everything to them. Over 60 years of independent our mind are still in slavery. Even now, English is taking over our churches. All the big churches speak only English. And these pastors ...
read full comment
Twi is dominant because Akans are largely illiterate and have low IQ, hence, find it difficult to learn any other language, let alone speak it well. That is the only reason why Twi is popular. Can you imagine I met a Kumasian ...
read full comment
I think the writer is a young man. This issue of Twi becoming a national language had been an issue before but it never worked and will not work.
The Lady MP knew her spoken English will be on the Parliament floor. I humbly ...
read full comment
The writer is a 62 year old fart who has been living in London for more than 30 something years! Got it!
You are sick in the head ,twi be made national language in Ghana, we would have divided Ghana into two.stupid Ashanti nationalist ,your analysis is intellectually flawed.
So you think electing illiterates is the best way to go, Go on and encourage that, if mp don't expose wrong doing it means they can't speak good Twi.
I strongly support you,we need to do this at all cost,
In fact all banks don't speak English when that are talking to their customers,most listing Radio station in Ghana is peace FM .so what are we talking about. We need ch ...
read full comment
Adofo, well written but I would expect you to have written your piece in Twi to buttress your point. You failed me as you wrote in English. Please start this crusade and write in Twi.
Hip hip hip; hurray. Let's go for it. Twi all the way. I mean, with all due respect, the writer is absolutely right. All the other dialects are equally important to be maintained but the Twi as a matter of fact is the most d ...
read full comment
She could have chosen to speak her local language, she created the impression that she was competent in spoken English but disappointed her listeners. Instead of advising her, you chose to change the behaviour of a whole nati ...
read full comment
Mr Adofo,
Drop your English Rockson name and we will start the conversation in the right context.
East Africans use a lingua Franca Swahili in place of their many ethnic tongues which is gradually dying albeit slowly.But th ...
read full comment
WHAT IS WRONG WITH A GHANAIAN WOMAN NOT SPEAKING ENGLISH, BUT I HAVE A QUESTION FOR THE MEN, WHAT ABOUT OF SHE GIVE HER SELF TO YOU, OR TAKE CARE OF YOU WITH HER RICHES, WILL YOU ASPECT HER,WITHOUT SPEAKING ENGLISH, THINK TWI ...
read full comment
Is this a research, an appeal, politics, rebutal or schezephrenia?
So u want us to use twi as a national language? That will never happen in Ghana as far as am concern.what kind of foolish and barbaric thinking is that? I once was in Kumasi n l spoke to one woman in English who asked me whic ...
read full comment
Rockson, what do you say to this stunning success of our own beloved sister? You can translate her work into Twi for the benefit of "Twi" speakers.
Meet Yaa Gyasi, the young author with a $1-million debut novel
Who? Yaa ...
read full comment