Kenyan President’s mockery of Nigerian english ignites storm
A casual remark at a diaspora gathering has landed Kenyan President William Ruto in the middle of a continent-wide controversy, after he publicly suggested that Nigerians speaking English were so difficult to understand they needed a translator.
Addressing Kenyans living in Italy on Monday, Ruto used the moment to tout his country’s education system, but it was his dig at Nigeria that stole the headlines. “Our education is good. Our English is good. We speak some of the best English in the world. If you listen to a Nigerian speaking, you don’t know what they are saying. You need a translator even when they are speaking English,” he said, drawing laughter from the room.
The reaction beyond that room was far less amused.
Nigerians and other Africans flooded social media with condemnation, with many framing Ruto’s comments not as harmless banter but as a reflection of colonial conditioning dressed up as national pride. Zimbabwean journalist Hopewell Chin’ono was among the prominent voices to weigh in. “English is a colonial language, not a measure of intelligence, capability, or national progress,” he wrote.
Former Nigerian senator Shehu Sani took a more pointed approach, invoking the weight of Nigeria’s literary legacy. “Ruto is mocking the English of the country with a Nobel Prize for literature winner. The Nation of Achebe and Chimamanda,” he posted on X, referencing Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka alongside celebrated authors Chinua Achebe and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
Others urged Ruto to redirect his energy toward the economic pressures facing ordinary Kenyans, rising living costs, and unemployment, chief among them, rather than scoring points in an inter-country rivalry.
Linguistically, the premise of Ruto’s mockery is one that scholars would contest. Both Kenya and Nigeria inherited English as a colonial language but have since developed their own distinct spoken varieties, each shaped by their vastly different indigenous language landscapes. Nigeria alone has over 500 languages, whose diverse cadences and intonations naturally influence how English is spoken. Kenya’s Bantu, Nilotic and Cushitic linguistic heritage does the same for its own accent.
The episode also arrives with context. Earlier this month, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu drew Kenyan ire after claiming Nigerians were better off than people in Kenya and other African countries, a remark that sparked its own online backlash. While Ruto made no direct reference to Tinubu’s comments, the timing has fuelled speculation that his remarks were not entirely unprompted.
Ruto’s government has yet to issue an official response, though some Kenyans online have come to his defence, arguing that the remarks were taken out of context and that critics failed to read the humour in the moment.
The Kenya-Nigeria online rivalry is well-worn territory, a recurring feature of African social media marked by sharp wit, economic comparisons, and occasional political sparring. But with two sitting presidents now trading barbs in quick succession, what is usually sport has started to feel like something with higher stakes.
Source: BBC
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