Pupils of pacific schools thrill at cultural day

The pupils of Pacific Schools, Lagos, recently treated parents and guests to a day of fun and excitement during the school’s cultural day.

The colourful occasion, held in the school premises, afforded the students and their teachers the opportunity to display the different cultural attires of the many ethnic groups in the country.

In addition, there were also cultural dances, songs, poem recitation and drama. The guests also had a taste of some traditional cuisines, exhibited at the occasion.And from their faces and attitude, it was obvious the gaily-dressed children were having a nice time.

It was indeed a beautiful event, as the children’s colourful outfits, accessorised with beads, horsetails, caps and walking sticks, among others, testified to Nigeria’s rich cultural heritage.

Underscoring the necessity of encouraging the children to embrace and appreciate their culture, the school’s Proprietor, Mr. Omosowon Idowu Remigious, urged parents to constantly speak to their children and wards in their mother tongue.

Remigious warned that the rate at which families are abandoning the use of mother tongue is alarming.He reminded that culture is a totality of one’s language, food, dressing, music, religion, customs and tradition, among others, adding that it is important to expose pupils to the core values of their culture and origin.

He said: “The rate at which we are abandoning our mother tongue for the English Language may spell doom for the most important aspect of our culture, which is our language. In 2011, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed May 21 of every year as the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development.

“It is a holiday for the promotion of diversity issues. It is an opportunity to help communities understand the value of cultural diversity and learn how to live together in harmony. This shows how important our culture is.”He urged Federal Government to endeavour to introduce yearly cultural celebration, which is capable of uniting various ethnic groups in the country.

On his part, the school’s Principal, Mr. Andrew Mekwunye regretted that parents are increasingly rejecting the use of local dialect as a means of communication within the family.He said: “Today, many Nigerians cannot greet in their native language. African native foods, which provided antidote to most diseases, have long been abandoned by our people, and the extended family system is getting eroded very fast…”