Speaker Bagbin calls for local language adoption
He christened the English language adopted by the country as another man's language which he said was not helpful.
Prosper Kwaku Selassy Agbitor 
Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, has called for a concerted efforts by stakeholders to formulate a national policy to adopt a local language as Ghana's official language.
He christened the English language adopted by the country as another man's language which he said was not helpful.
He bemoaned the adoption of the English language as an official language used by the country while cautioning that “no society develops with the language of another society”.
Mr. Bagbin further noted with regret that one of the challenges in Ghana. Adding, "we must get our language right as a country.For example, the Arabs are ahead of us in terms of development because they have adopted an official language that every citizen understands.”
He said it will be prudent for the country to adopt a unique national identity that would foster cordial relationships among the citizenry to help accelerate the country's growth and development.
The Speaker of Parliament made the remarks while paying a courtesy call on Nana Kobena Nketsia V, the Paramount Chief of Essikado at his palace, at Essikado in the Western Region.
The visit was part of the Speaker’s engagements with key stakeholders to solicit their support to commemorate 30 years of uninterrupted parliamentary democracy under the fourth republic.
Mr Bagbin said Ghana must take inspiration from East and South Africa who had adopted Swahili as their official language and use a local language as the official language.
The move, he said would promote inclusiveness and participation of everyone in the country’s quest to achieve sustainable growth.
30 years of practicing democracy as a country, he observed there was a need to re-evaluate and re-strategize certain aspects of the country’s democratic principles for its continuous sustenance which he noted, could only be possible if Parliament engaged with the citizenry to understand their views and suggestions to inform policy reforms on parliamentary businesses.
Mr. Bagbin indicated that it was necessary to involve traditional authorities more in the governance process, saying they were the land’s custodians, adding,
“The real leaders of Ghana and Africa are the traditional leaders. They are the people that their followers really believe in.”
Nana Nketsia V lauded Speaker Bagbin for his efforts to engage with stakeholders to consolidate and promote democracy in the country.
The Speaker of Parliament was accompanied by Mr Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, Western Regional Minister, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Takoradi Constituency, Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, MP for Ellembelle Constituency, Mr Joseph Cudjoe, MP for Effia Constituency and Mr Eric Afful, MP for Amenfi West Constituency amongst others.
