The Akwapem Twi version of Ghana’s Constitution has been launched in Accra with a call on Ghanaians to do away with linguistic imperialism.
The 1992 Constitution in Akuapem Twi, the first of its kind in the history of Ghana, was done by Kwasi Opare, a distinguished lawyer. It took him eight years to translate the national legal document from English to Akuapem Twi.
The translation captures all the preamble, the entire 26 chapters and two schedules. It has also adopted transliteration and the use of neologism, using Akan spellings.
Speaking at the launch, Professor Kofi Agyekum, Acting Dean, School of Performing Arts, University of Ghana (UG), noted that although Ghanaians were proud to have attained independence in 1957, the country was still under linguistic bondage because of linguistic imperialism.
The former head of Linguistics, UG, described linguistic imperialism as “phenomenon in which the minds and lives of the speakers of a language are dominated by another language to the point where they believe that they can and should use only that foreign language.”
He noted that linguistic imperialism had compelled the country to have all its official documents in the colonial master’s language.
“Sadly, our constitution, the pillar of our undertaking as a state, is also in English. Where is our identity and cultural heritage then?” He quizzed.
He therefore urged citizens to safeguard, protect and document Ghana’s languages for future generations.
“We should not allow linguistic imperialism to thrive. It will trample on our linguistic human rights. Let us embark on active language decolonization through translation like this one,” he stressed
Prof. Agyekum lauded Kwasi Opare, “who dreamt so big towards language decolonization to translate the 1992 constitution into Akuapem Twi.”
According to him, countries such as Brazil, Bolivia, South Africa, and Tanzania had taken the lead by translating their national constitution into some indigenous languages.
He said the translation of the Constitution in Akuapem Twi would not pose any problems for Akan speakers and readers, saying the national legal document was user-friendly and would be useful in various homes.
Prof. Agyekum noted that “our indigenous Ghanaian language can serve us all in diverse ways of life if we are anxious to develop it to the maximum.
Akan was being used in education, media, arts and culture, religion, commerce and trade, and ICT, he said.
Prof. Agyekum therefore called on chiefs and traditional authorities to be very proud of their cultural identity and the work done by Mr Kwasi Opare. “Elsewhere, this huge translation project should have been a national project and the same was sponsored by the state.”
He appealed to traditional authorities to take a keen interest in Ghana’s indigenous languages in forms of communication.
“It would be lovely to listen to speeches delivered by our kings, chiefs and queen mothers in our indigenous languages. This will implant the love of our mother tongue into current and future generations.
If we do not start to cherish and use our mother tongue now, and all of us are interested in foreign languages at the expense of our own, it will be chaotic. We will be on the path of language shift, language attrition, language loss and finally language death.”
Prof. Agyekum said: “to avoid such a catastrophic situation, let us maintain our languages and cultures through the translation and publication of essential documents like the 1992 Constitution, a Ghanaian Bible of a sort.”
During the launch event, Nana Ansah Kwaw IV, Chief of Adumasa, praised Kwasi Opare for his remarkable achievement and urged the National Commission on Civic Education to coordinate a widespread unveiling of the Akuapem Twi Constitution.
Mr. Kwasi Opare, the translator, emphasised that this national legal document would facilitate a better understanding and appreciation of the law among all citizens.
Mr. Opare also expressed his appreciation for the significant role played by the late Appenteng Sackey, a former lecturer at the University of Ghana, whose efforts contributed to the introduction of the Constitution in Akuapem Twi.
The initial copies of the Constitution in Akuapem Twi were made available for purchase at a cost of GHC 2,000.