I stumbled upon this clip of Nigeria's supposed first lady trying to read a speech which had been prepared for her by her press office.

I had heard rumours that Mrs Jonathan's reading skills are,  to put it diplomatically rudimentary, but when i saw this clip i was in shock, how can we as a nation have a woman like this representing nigeria? 

The role of first lady of any nation is an important one in that it involves a lot of public speakign arrangements and photo calls, a first lady in my opinion should be refined and well groomed in speech, attitude and mannerisms.

I feel totally embarrassed that this woman is going to be parading around the world as nigeria's first lady and i really think that the sight of this woman laboriously reading a speech in any public forum will confirm our postion in the world as a running joke of a nation.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7bOClsDc-s

lol

i almost fell off my seat listening to this so called batu speech

blacksta:

lol

i almost fell off my seat listening to this so called batu speech

bro this is no longer a laughing matter - the woman cannot read english properly - why is she being allowed to embarrass herself and her nation?

This one pass batu English o, na 'Jakumu english nonsense'

And when she does speak she blows Gbagaun/Gbo/Tiyawn

She needs an English Teacher ASAP!!!

Guys chill. English isn't her first language or do you guys expect her to fake an accent here? Let the woman be.

dem_people:

Guys chill. English isn't her first language or do you guys expect her to fake an accent here? Let the woman be.

its not about her accent - its the fact that she can not actually read english - no-one cares about accents but people do care about your reading ability, she just sounds like someone who is just starting to learn how to read in english.

dem_people:

Guys chill. English isn't her first language or do you guys expect her to fake an accent here? Let the woman be.

That really is a lame and untenable excuse. English is our official language. It is embarrassing that we have a first lady who is not at all profficient in the use of our official language. Allowing Patience Jonathan anywhere near a microphone in public is the biggest example of how sycophantic , towards authority , we are as a people  . If the woman is a poor communicator who can barely speak her nation's official language then why not simply keep her away from public speaking thus sparing 150 million Nigerians the embarrasment of having to watch her ridicule Nigeria time and time again ? Na by force to have an audible first lady? What manner of mindless sycophancy afflicts those who continue to indulge this woman to the ridicule of Nigeria?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria

Federal Republic of Nigeria
Republik Nijeriya
Njíkötá Óchíchìiwù Naíjíríà (Igbo)
Republik Federaal bu Niiseriya (Fula)
Àpapọ̀ Olómìnira ilẹ̀ Nàìjíríà (Yoruba)
Jam-huriyar Tarayiar Nijeriya (Hausa)
 


Motto: "Unity and Faith, Peace and Progress"
Anthem: "Arise, O Compatriots"


Capital Abuja
9°4′N 7°29′E / 9.067°N 7.483°E / 9.067; 7.483
Largest city Lagos
Official language(s) English

Recognised national languages Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba
Recognised regional languages Edo, Efik, Fulani, Idoma, Ijaw Kanuri

i love the way she was adjusting those sun shade as if she was fixing tha prob. saying guys
i dey fix probs, look at me.
lol

cap28:

its not about her accent - its the fact that she can not actually read english - no-one cares about accents but people do care about your reading ability, she just sounds like someone who is just starting to learn how to read in english.  

I'm not here to defend this woman but lets get something straight. Can you read well in your native language? If you're given a piece of paper containing an article written in your native language, can you read it well without faltering? One thing with Nigerians is that we like to always "overdo" foreign things to the detriment of our own ways.

English is another country's native language which was lorded over us in the name of colonialism but sadly, our people have used the English language as a medium to sort of, gauge one's intellectual capacity. We wouldn't blink an eye if she can't speak her native Okrika language yet when she "can't read well" in English, it becomes an uproar. Colonial mentality, I say.

ROTFLMAO!!! OMG!!! I swear, I laffed my azz out!!

Sadly, this is not a "Patience" problem, but also a "Nigerian" problem. Eferyborry, leaft your warra, let us af a toast, including the "I yam what I yams"   

Video was excruciating. Why do I cringe, anytime I hear "Nigerian women"?

dem_people:

I'm not here to defend this woman but lets get something straight. Can you read well in your native language? If you're given a piece of paper containing an article written in your native language, can you read it well without faltering? One thing with Nigerians is that we like to always "overdo" foreign things to the detriment of our own ways.

English is another country's native language which was lorded over us in the name of colonialism but sadly, our people have used the English language as a medium to sort of, gauge one's intellectual capacity. We wouldn't blink an eye if she can't speak her native Okrika language yet when she "can't read well" in English, it becomes an uproar. Colonial mentality, I say.

Its all about being whiter than the white man. It is indeed colonial mentality.

Gbawe:

That really is a lame and untenable excuse. English is our official language. It is embarrassing that we have a first lady who is not at all profficient in the use of our official language. Allowing Patience Jonathan anywhere near a microphone in public is the biggest example of how sycophantic , towards authority , we are as a people  . If the woman is a poor communicator who can barely speak her nation's official language then why not simply keep her away from public speaking thus sparing 150 million Nigerians the embarrasment of having to watch her ridicule Nigeria time and time again ? Na by force to have an audible first lady? What manner of mindless sycophancy afflicts those who continue to indulge this woman to the ridicule of Nigeria?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria

That's nonsense. At least she can read and speak in English albeit not so eloquently and flawlessly. The fact that English is Nigeria's official language doesn't make it her first language. I could understand all she said without straining my ears.

Was she taught in her native language?  When I schooled in Nigeria,  we were taught in English. We wrote our papers in English and we spoke English. So really, there is no excuse.

If she intends to become a president's wife, then she ought to practice her communication skill because she can't communicate to all Nigerians in her native language. English is one of our official language, a common language that we can all understand to form a better communication.

dem_people:

I'm not here to defend this woman but lets get something straight. Can you read well in your native language? If you're given a piece of paper containing an article written in your native language, can you read it well without faltering? One thing with Nigerians is that we like to always "overdo" foreign things to the detriment of our own ways.

English is another country's native language which was lorded over us in the name of colonialism but sadly, our people have used the English language as a medium to sort of, gauge one's intellectual capacity. We wouldn't blink an eye if she can't speak her native Okrika language yet when she "can't read well" in English, it becomes an uproar. Colonial mentality, I say.
That's nonsense. At least she can read in English albeit not so eloquently and flawlessly. The fact that English is Nigeria's official language doesn't make it her first language. I could understand all she said without straining my ears.

good im glad you're not defending her because you're not doing a very good job.

First of all yes i can read in my native language albeit not as fluently as i can read english but let me tell you i would not attempt to go to a traditional gathering, pick up a microphone and stutter and stumble through a speech in my native language knowing full well that my reading ability was not fluent- and if i did i would have no one else but myself to blame if people ridiculed and mocked me for doing so.

By the same token Patience Jonathan has no business embarrassing not only herself but the entire nigerian nation by openly displaying her limited english reading ability in a public forum.

I am well aware of the fact that english is a foreign language imposed on us by way of colonialism however since it is as another poster correctly pointed out our national lingua franca - a language that we use to communicate amongst ourselves given our diverse ethnicities surely it makes sense to know how to speak it correctly?

I am not against having a national language which could gradually replace english in order to demonstrate pride in our nation however in the meantime, english is the language we speak and since its what we have for now why not speak and read it properly?   And if you can't - stay away from making speeches in public forums which require speakers to speak or read fluent english.

dem_people:

English is another country's native language which was lorded over us in the name of colonialism but sadly, our people have used the English language as a medium to sort of, gauge one's intellectual capacity. We wouldn't blink an eye if she can't speak her native Okrika language yet when she "can't read well" in English, it becomes an uproar. Colonial mentality, I say.

Drop it dude . Your excuses are becoming more desperate and more ridiculous. You are making us sound like Nearnderthals . However we gained English as our official language is not justification for any Nigerian not to make an attempt to speak English efficiently . Patience , even if she is dreadful at it, only continues to speak English , and not her native languauge, because she and her handlers know damn well that it is not tenable for the first lady of Nigeria not to be able to communicate with the World in the official language of Nigeria which happens to be English.

If you wan't to be stuck in 1942 dat na your own wahala but I know very forward looking Nigerians  who , aware of the need to give their children global competitiveness in an increasingly tough world, ensure their wards learn international languages such as French and Spanish. Those folks are not suffering from "colonial mentality" . They are just being realistic and adult about situation they did not cause but must adapt to.  While the World is shrinking and becoming more global maybe , to reject colonialism , you would feel happier if we tell the English man to f.uck of with his language while we go back to every Nigerian being profficient in their native language alone? Sounds good and forward thinking innit ?

Ileke-IdI:

Was she taught in her native language?  When I schooled in Nigeria,  we were taught in English. We wrote our papers in English and we spoke English. So really, there is no excuse.

If she intends to become a president's wife, then she ought to practice her communication skill because she can't communicate to all Nigerians in her native language. English is one of our official language, a common language that we can all understand to form a better communication.

Excellent post. Patience Jonathan is probably just not well educated . That is the ugly truth some of us will accept if not blinded by a need to defend anything to do with GEJ obdurately. When you make a grammaticallyy incorrect statements like "Sambo (VP) is once a children " that is an indication that you are poorly educated . It has nada to do with accent. It is the grammatical error folks laugh at not her accent . The sensible thing for all her handlers to do , if they were not as.slicking sycophants, is to shield her from public speaking . Politicians are never indulged like this in most nations where Politics is serious business involving serious scrutiny of those involved . With the display from Patience , Nigeria is showing itself to be a nation where anything or anyone will be indulged and condoned , however nationally embarrassing , if connected to the Presidency.  Besides, many first wives , aware of their own limitations , would be the ones to willingly do what is right so as not to embarass their husband and nation.

I marvel at the really low IQ quite a few NLers display shamelessly. Instead of discussing real political issues, they crowd on someone elses wife. She isn't married to you, so whats your problem?
Why leave aside crucial issues like politicians dealing in drugs below and sink to gutter levels discussing another mans wife?

The trashy morality of some NLers really beats the crap out of me.

www.nairaland.com/attachments/139268_BolaTinubuHeroinforfeiture_jpgb084d334c74cec7150ee9588a3aed2fc

dem_people:

That's nonsense. At least she can read and speak in English albeit not so eloquently and flawlessly. The fact that English is Nigeria's official language doesn't make it her first language. I could understand all she said without straining my ears.

Why are you talking like this

Whether English is her first language or not, Nigerians official common language that is understood by all is English,.,.,. no one cares whether she is ijaw or is is French and does not know English,., so long as she is the first lady of a multicultural nation, she should be able to communicate in the countries official language which is English

Beaf:

I marvel at the really low IQ quite a few NLers display shamelessly. Instead of discussing real political issues, they crowd on someone elses wife. She isn't married to you, so whats your problem?
Why leave aside crucial issues like politicians dealing in drugs below and sink to gutter levels discussing another mans wife?

The trashy morality of some NLers really beats the crap out of me.

www.nairaland.com/attachments/139268_BolaTinubuHeroinforfeiture_jpgb084d334c74cec7150ee9588a3aed2fc

Lol

Please dont derail the thread.

This thread is about Dame Patience and not about Tinubu

anyway we are waiting for your response on this thread

https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-593362.32.html

Beaf:

I marvel at the really low IQ quite a few NLers display shamelessly. Instead of discussing real political issues, they crowd on someone elses wife. She isn't married to you, so whats your problem?
Why leave aside crucial issues like politicians dealing in drugs below and sink to gutter levels discussing another mans wife?

The trashy morality of some NLers really beats the crap out of me.

www.nairaland.com/attachments/139268_BolaTinubuHeroinforfeiture_jpgb084d334c74cec7150ee9588a3aed2fc

total bullshit

how does this relate to this trend

alj harem:

Why are you talking like this

Whether English is her first language or not, Nigerians official common language that is understood by all is English,.,.,. no one cares whether she is ijaw or is is French and does not know English,., so long as she is the first lady of a multicultural nation, she should be able to communicate in the countries official language which is English

Thank you . If she cannot communicate effectively in our official Language why does she not just remain in the background like other classy and intuitively intelligent first wives Worldwide who deliberately refrain from courting Public visibility ?

cap28:

good im glad you're not defending her because you're not doing a very good job.

First of all yes i can read in my native language albeit not as fluently as i can read english but let me tell you i would not attempt to go to a traditional gathering, pick up a microphone and stutter and stumble through a speech in my native language knowing full well that my reading ability was not fluent- and if i did i would have no one else but myself to blame if people ridiculed and mocked me for doing so.

By the same token Patience Jonathan has no business embarrassing not only herself but the entire nigerian nation by openly displaying her limited english reading ability in a public forum.

I am well aware of the fact that english is a foreign language imposed on us by way of colonialism however since it is as another poster correctly pointed out our national lingua franca - a language that we use to communicate amongst ourselves given our diverse ethnicities surely it makes sense to know how to speak it correctly?

I am not against having a national language which could gradually replace english in order to demonstrate pride in our nation however in the meantime, english is the language we speak and since its what we have for now why not speak and read it properly?   And if you can't - stay away from making speeches in public forums which require speakers to speak or read fluent english.  

Stop getting ahead of yourself. You have valid points here but I disagree with some. About the green-bolded, what do you think she should do, fake an accent? At least she could read (and write) in the language despite her lack of eloquence.  Speaking it might not be her strongest point. What else do you want? For her to speak like the Queen? Abaaaaa!

Gbawe:

Drop it dude . Your excuses are becoming more desperate and more ridiculous. You are making us sound like Nearnderthals . However we gained English as our official language is not justification for any Nigerian not to make an attempt to speak English efficiently . Patience , even if she is dreadful at it, only continues to speak English , and not her native languauge, because she and her handlers know damn well that it is not tenable for the first lady of Nigeria not to be able to communicate with the World in the official language of Nigeria which happens to be English.

If you wan't to be stuck in 1942 dat na your own wahala but I know very forward looking Nigerians  who , aware of the need to give their children global competitiveness in an increasingly tough world, ensure their wards learn international languages such as French and Spanish. Those folks are not suffering from "colonial mentality" . They are just being realistic and adult about situation they did not cause but must adapt to.  While the World is shrinking and becoming more global maybe , to reject colonialism , you would feel happier if we tell the English man to bleed of with his language while we go back to every Nigerian being profficient in their native language alone? Sounds good and forward thinking innit ?

No need to "overheat" cos of my comments. Please, go through my posts and tell me where I criticised the use of English as a language. I really don't think you understood what I wrote. Couldn't you hear and understand all she said? Of course English is the most popular language on earth and its only foolhardy not to be able to communicate in it. But my point still remains. Its colonial mentality that will make people to come on this thread and start spewing trash about Mrs. Jonathan's accent. I and people around me here, can fully understand what she's saying. So, that is that. Peace

Beaf:

I marvel at the really low IQ quite a few NLers display shamelessly. Instead of discussing real political issues, they crowd on someone elses wife. She isn't married to you, so whats your problem?
Why leave aside crucial issues like politicians dealing in drugs below and sink to gutter levels discussing another mans wife?

The trashy morality of some NLers really beats the crap out of me.

www.nairaland.com/attachments/139268_BolaTinubuHeroinforfeiture_jpgb084d334c74cec7150ee9588a3aed2fc

pathetic - what on earth has this got to do with this thread ? if you don't like the discussion you know what to do

I beg you people should leave her alone. She can speak good english, it is you people who cannot hear her properly.

alj harem:

total bullshit

how does this relate to this trend

The guy is a motor-park tout without the intelligence to reason honestly or properly . We see his highly unthinking attempt to reduce this debate to 'agbero' territory , more suited to his bole kaja (come down and fight) tactics , with how he writes as if Nigerians are merely attacking "another man's wife" while he is obviously totally ignorant of the notion that Nigerians can legitimately comment on actions of the first lady that is embarrassing to Nigeria and Nigerians as a whole !!! I really don't see why anyone takes Beaf seriously . I ignore him most of the time even if he insists on following me around shamelessly .

Gbawe:

The guy is a motor-park tout without the intelligence to reason honestly or properly . We see his highly unthinking attempt to reduce this debate to 'agbero' territory , more suited to his bole kaja (come down and fight) tactics , with how he writes as if Nigerians are merely attacking "another man's wife" while he is obviously totally ignorant of how Nigerians can legitimately comment on actions of the first lady that is embarrassing to Nigeria and Nigerians as a whole !!! I really don't see why anyone takes Beaf seriously . I ignore him most of the time even if he insists on following me around shamelessly .

I thought i was the only one who noticed this about Beaf, honestly the guy needs serious help with his aggression and crude attitude.

dem_people:

I'm not here to defend this woman but lets get something straight. Can you read well in your native language? If you're given a piece of paper containing an article written in your native language, can you read it well without faltering? One thing with Nigerians is that we like to always "overdo" foreign things to the detriment of our own ways.

English is another country's native language which was lorded over us in the name of colonialism but sadly, our people have used the English language as a medium to sort of, gauge one's intellectual capacity. We wouldn't blink an eye if she can't speak her native Okrika language yet when she "can't read well" in English, it becomes an uproar. Colonial mentality, I say.

here we go again

oya

democracy is a form of govt by the white man

the internet is a medium invented by the white man

gsm is a medum invented by the white man

why don't you shed this colonial mentality sharp sharp - get a talking drum, and lets forget all these oyinboesque primaries , elections etal

oyb:

here we go again

oya

democracy is a form of govt by the white man

the internet is a medium invented by the white man

gsm is a medum invented by the white man

why don't you shed this colonial mentality sharp sharp - get a talking drum, and lets forget all these oyinboesque primaries , elections etal

Humorous indeed.

.

dem_people:

Stop getting ahead of yourself. You have valid points here but I disagree with some. About the green-bolded, what do you think she should do, fake an accent? At least she could read (and write) in the language despite her lack of eloquence.  Speaking it might not be her strongest point. What else do you want? For her to speak like the Queen? Abaaaaa!

I have already said that its not about her accent, its her poor reading ability - can't you see that she struggles to read english, this is simply unacceptable for a first lady especially one who loves being in the limelight.  She can't eat her cake and have it too , you can't keep parading yourself in public but then when it comes to public speaking you speak like someone who is still learning english, come on! is it asking for too much to expect our first lady to know how to read and speak english properly?

Beaf:

I marvel at the really low IQ quite a few NLers display shamelessly. Instead of discussing real political issues, they crowd on someone elses wife. She isn't married to you, so whats your problem?
Why leave aside crucial issues like politicians dealing in drugs below and sink to gutter levels discussing another mans wife?

The trashy morality of some NLers really beats the crap out of me.

www.nairaland.com/attachments/139268_BolaTinubuHeroinforfeiture_jpgb084d334c74cec7150ee9588a3aed2fc

Stop the insults. The woman isn't just someone else's wife. She's a first lady of the country for crying out loud. She represents Nigeria. If she thinks the way you do, then she should have sat in her husband's house and speak her 'English' with her kids or better still, practise the skills on her subjects rather than coming out to disgrace herself and the entire nation in public.

Open another thread for your concern. Don't derail this one.