Rep. Moshood Akiolu, Member, Federal House of Representatives, representing Lagos Island, Lagos Constituency ll, has urged public and private schools to teach children cultural values.
He said that proprietors, principals and headteachers of various schools should celebrate Cultural Day, to highlight the importance of culture and moral values.
Akiolu made these known on Friday, during the celebration of Cultural Day at St Mary Primary School in Lagos.
He said that the cultural day celebration in schools was a good step in the right direction to preserve Nigerian cultural values.
The lawmaker urged both public and private schools to prioritise cultural events, noting that many children do not speak their local languages.
“Celebrating cultural day in schools makes the children to know their identities and that they belong somewhere.
“So, I believe that events like this should be organised constantly in schools for not only the wards but also for parents to know the essence of culture.
“This entails human behaviour, respect for people, the way they dress and the way they value people in the society.
“Cultural events in schools is a right step in the right direction,” the lawmaker said.
According to him, Nigerians have been brainwashed with Western culture which is not our way, and this has led to drastic reduction in our moral values.
“Even some people no longer embrace their local languages,” he said.
He commended the Lagos State House Assembly for taking a bold step in preserving their indigenous language.
Aioli said they did this by ensuring that Yoruba language is adopted as acceptable language used for legislative proceedings sometimes.
He noted that an event like cultural day was used to resurrect and bring back what had been lost.
“That is why I support and commend the body of lawmakers in Lagos Assembly for doing their legislative matter in local language,” he said.
Rev. Sister Felicia Gyang, Headmistress of St Mary’s Primary School, said the essence of the event was to teach and integrate norms and moral values embeded in our different culture to the pupils.
Gyang urged parents to go back to their roots and teach their wards those cultural values they shelved due to modernisation.
He said that scaling up cultural display was needed to avoid some cultures going into extinction.
“Our culture is our heritage, it identifies us wherever we go as Africans.
“So parents should allow the children to learn from them so as to pass it from generation to generation.
“Most of the things we do now is copied and it will not help us at all, I suggest more topics on culture should be added to social studies and Civic education for more understanding,” she said.
Mrs Kehinde Olatoyin, one of the parents, commended the school management for the event.
She said that the school was unique, as it encouraged and educated wards and parents on importance of embracing their culture.
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Adedayo Sanusi, a primary six pupil, commended the school management for organising the cultural event.
Sanusi said that it made her to understand some morals embedded in culture as a girl.
