By Abbey K. Semuwemba

I am here to plead with Ugandans to back Luganda as the national language of Uganda.  This debate has been ongoing.  All I know is that this issue will one day be revisited by parliament because laws change with the dynamics of society.  I ask those who consider themselves to be nationalists to consider making Luganda the national language of Uganda.

Debates on national or official languages are reviewed from time to time. Remember English defeated German by 1 vote to become the official language of the US in a congressional debate in 1795.  That was because more than 45million Americans said that their ancestry was German. Spanish speakers also make up a big percentage of the US population.  Estimates put them at around 40million.

We should not worry about politicians in Uganda because they make decisions depending on how they think they will benefit from the situation.  Our politicians don’t want to offend the non-Baganda voting bloc; a group that is becoming larger every year.  The trick for them is to play both sides; giving non-baganda what they want [making Swahilli the second official language] while retaining the Baganda vote at the same time.

Let us not beef up this issue of a national language into one of Baganda’s arrogance and lose sight of what is best for the country.  Luganda would do well as a national language because it is spoken by several tribes in the country.  It is unfair that indigenous African languages do not enjoy the status of national languages in Africa.  We need to go around this problem by agreeing to at least one language.

I also believe that declaring Luganda as our national language will be a good thing for the country in the long term.  Requiring immigrants to speak and write Luganda will be a needed requirement.  The national language is often the language in which commerce is conducted, it is the language used in public education, and it is the language embraced by government.  To have a foreign language as one’s national language carries a very deep message of the lack of self-determination.

The US has got more languages than all of Uganda combined but they managed to agree that English should become their national language.  Actually, they didn’t use the words “national language”. They chose to call it a “common and unifying language”. If you want to go to the United States and fit into its culture or become a citizen, you have to learn English.  The same was recently started here in the UK.

For long, Ugandans have allowed people from all directions to continue speaking languages from their homes.  This needs to stop as soon as we get Luganda as our national language.  In fact, before anyone is granted Uganda citizenship, one should be given a simple Luganda language test.  If you cannot demonstrate your ability to speak the native Luganda language, you’re out.  Go home, learn Luganda, and then apply again; simple.

I have been impressed by some non-Baganda women who dress in a kiganda way and speak Luganda on their weddings.  They are indirectly promoting nationhood.  Nationhood usually involves some combination of a national language, diet, dress, religion, physical appearance, etc.  We can promote our national identity without necessarily being Baganda by tribe.

We missed the chance to adopt English as the official language of East Africa.  Instead, we went for Swahili.  But all these things are reversible if people can see clearly without bringing a lot of tribal pride or prejudice into it.  So let us keep English as Uganda’s official language and promote Luganda as the national language.  The matter is in your hands.

abbeysemuwemba@gmail.com

Mr. Abbey Kibirige Semuwemba is a Ugandan living in the United Kingdom