“The EU's policy of multilingualism has been an important tool toward achieving economic competitiveness, growth and better jobs, promoting lifelong learning and intercultural dialogue and nurturing a space for EU’s political dialogue through multilingual communication with its almost 500 million citizens.
This weeklong celebration is a creative and dynamic way to encourage Filipino students and professionals to learn other EU languages especially relevant in these globalized times when being multilingual means fostering personal growth, enhancing skills, and promoting greater chances for mobility.”
The quote was lifted from one of the dailies on the celebration of the “Linggo de Lingua Europa”.
The article lays down the participation of schools and private organizations in promoting European languages as a tool for personal enhancement and a key for the country in fostering more fraternal diplomatic relations.
However, how sane is the move when the thrust of the government is the widespread use of Filipino? I have nothing against that. My concern is why is it that English, the other co-equal national language seemed to be frowned at when used and the speaker, a suspect afflicted with the so-called colonial mentality?
Many believe that the Philippines is one of the countries with most English speakers. That is another way of saying that the Philippines is one of the largest English-speaking countries.
That may be true if the English we mean is basic. There is a difference between reading about apples and Cinderella and in understanding the op-eds of newspapers.
Most of us from Batanes to Tawi-Tawi can give a fascinating answer in fluent English when asked “How are you?” but I honestly doubt if we can all sensibly explain globalization or global warming when asked.
Instead of promoting tough to learn languages such as French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and the much hated Spanish; why don’t they not graph a program that promotes written and oral English proficiency instead? Who cares to learn any of these Euro languages when English is spoken and understood in most part of Europe? How many have the luxury to pay a visit to Europe in the first place when most Filipinos have not yet visited other parts of the country due to monetary constraints?
I wish success for the affair although in my view it lacks practicality. -30-
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