By Ijeoma Azubuike
Providing an answer to a question in a
nationwide television programme, Mr
Obafaiye Shem, a senior official at the
Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps,
inadvertently chipped in a phrase, “My oga
at the top’’.
The phrase has since caught up with most
Nigerians, educated and illiterates, who
apply it to suit different connotations in
their everyday interpersonal
communications in Pidgin English.
Pidgin is commonly used as lingua franca
among educated and illiterate Nigerians,
given the multi-ethnic and multi-cultural
nature of the society.
This is further re-enforced by the nation’s
high illiteracy levels that varies from one
section of the country to another, and even
within each section of the society.
Language experts say that the Nigerian
Pidgin had, for a long time, been viewed
as an effective medium of unhindered self-
expression in inter-personal
communication.
Amos Tutuola, a famous Nigerian literary
giant, did most of his works including “The
Palm- Wine Drinkard (1952), in Pidgin.
Many later writers have had to do works in
Pidgin, thus depicting the popularity and
wide usage of the language as a medium of
communication.
Aig-Imouekhuede’s poem, “Stew and
Sufferhead’’; and Ken Saro Wiwa’s
collection of songs, “Dis Nigeria Self’’, for
instance are written in Pidgin.
Not only this, Mamman Vatsa’s “Tori For
Geti Bow Leg’’, Ezenwa Ohaeto’s “I wan Bi
President’’ and “If To Say I be Soja’’, are
also expressed in Pidgin to communicate
to a wider audience.
Edwin Oribhabor’s “Abuja na hevun, na
kpangba an oda puem dem’’ was
published in 2010.
Today, one of the most popular FM radio
stations in the FCT, Wazobia FM, runs all
its programmes in Pidgin.
In spite of its popularity and usage, some
scholars are skeptical about the use of
Pidgin, especially in official engagements,
insisting that it does not deserve much
recognition.
They hinge their argument on the fact that
Pidgin could adulterate individual’s
capacities in written and spoken English.
But linguists observe that Pidgin could
come to play when there is need for better
understanding in discussions involving a
wider society where the choice of English
Language as a medium may hinder
audience participation.
Dr Kelechukwu Ihemere, a senior lecturer in
the Department of English, Linguistics and
Cultural Studies, University of Westminster,
UK, notes that more than five million
Nigerians speak Pidgin.
In his book entitled: “An integrated
approach to language attitudes: the case of
the Ikwerre of Port Harcourt City, Nigeria’’,
he says that Pidgin is a second language
for another 75 million Nigerians.
According to Ihemere, Nigerian Pidgin is
derived partly from the Edo-Delta area of
the country, but varies among the
speakers.
He posits that dialects of Pidgin exist,
including that of Warri, Sapele, Benin, Port-
Harcourt, Lagos especially in Ajegunle, and
Onitsha, noting that Pidgin has gained
more popularity for dealings in the nation’s
socio-economic activities.
The views of language experts
notwithstanding, some observers have
different opinion on whether or not Pidgin
should be encouraged as a tool for
effective communication.
Mrs Maimuna Bashorun, 62, a trader
argues: “I no no why we dey force
ourselves dey learn anoda person
language wey hard to speak’’.
But Mr Asonwata Idahosa, a journalist,
thinks that “Pidgin does not give the
impression that we went to school; the
problem with it is that it is boundless,
admitting new vocabularies every day.
“The kind of vocabularies it entertains
makes it difficult to study. I am not
comfortable when I listen to people speak
in pidgin, especially on radio
programmes.’’
Mrs Margret John, a teacher, supports
Idahosa, saying: “I hate to listen to Pidgin
English because I feel it is a language of
the unserious’’.
“It is common now to listen to some
conversations even in government quarters
such as “na now you dey resume work’’;
my oga at the top never come? It is not
tidy’’.
But Mr Femi Yusuf, a trader, thinks
differently, saying: “I prefer to interact in
Pidgin because it gives me a chance to
express myself well’’.
Olakunle Soriyan, also a trader, says the
ability to speak and write good English
may not be a proof of one’s intelligence.
Mrs Patricia Okoye, a parent, argues that:
“Many students in our schools lack sound
education because some of the teachers
unconsciously teach the students in
Pidgin.
“In Nigerian schools where the English
Language is a compulsory subject, one will
not be surprised that regular failure of this
subject is due to this development.’’
Although the study of English Language is
compulsory in Nigerian secondary
schools, and form part of requirements for
admission for degree courses, some
youths say that frequent use of Pidgin is
affecting the performance of many
students negatively.
They say that many students are no longer
interested in speaking and writing in good
English Language.
Ibrahim Kadiri, a student, says he lacks the
ability to speak good English because of
his exposure to Pidgin at an early age.
But Chimezie Okafor, a student, has a
different opinion, insisting that “Pidgin can
be used in teaching students to enhance
understanding’’.
For Omobola Williams, a student, “Nigerian
Pidgin serves as a bridge between the
mother tongue and English Language
because it is a vital tool for wider reach
and interaction, public announcements and
information dissemination’’.
Prof. Robert Trask, a linguist at the
University of Sussex, asserts: “It is
nobody’s mother tongue…; it has no
elaborate grammar; it is very limited in
what it can convey, and different people
speak it differently.’’
All the same, language experts define
Pidgin as a simplified form of speech
formed out of one or more existing
languages, and used by people who have
no other language in common.

F.P?

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Pidgin: An Effective Language of Broadcasting in Nigeria

Pidgin as a language exists among people who do not share a common language but want to communicate with one another for trading or any other purposes. Akindele and Adegbite (53) noted “that Pidgins are no one’s mother tongue. They are used primarily in trading or plantation situation … their main function is to enable workers to communicate with each other”.

http://www.scharticles.com/pidgin-an-effective-language-of-broadcasting-in-nigeria/