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Equating language with intelligence is outdated and shortsighted: Cultural expert

todayJune 12, 2025 39

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Political analyst and cultural expert, Professor Musa Xulu, says the notion that one must articulate themselves perfectly in English or Afrikaans to be respected is outdated.
The scholar believes that respect and credibility should not depend on language fluency, but on the value of one’s ideas.
Xulu’s remarks come amid the debate over the use of English as a benchmark for intelligence.
A viral video skit by comedian and TV show host, Mpho Popps, in which he impersonates MK Party Member of Parliament and Shangaan musician, Kulani ‘Penny Penny’ Nkovani, has sparked widespread reaction on social media.

The controversy stems from Penny Penny’s struggle to articulate his questions in English to SAFA representatives who were appearing before a parliamentary committee on Sport, Arts, and Culture.

The video has prompted strong reactions, with many questioning whether language proficiency should determine credibility or intelligence in public discourse.
Poet and social rights activist, Ntsiki Mazwai, entered the fray and reignited the longstanding conversation over language and identity in South Africa.
Mazwai says ridiculing black people for not speaking, what society deems as, good English sends a harmful message that English is superior to indigenous languages.
Professor Xulu says parliamentarians should take advantage of the provision in the Constitution that gives them the liberty to express themselves in their mother tongue.
There are also translating devices in all the country’s legislatures to assist those who speak other languages to comprehend.
He says this will also assist administrators who account before the lawmakers made their points with confidence without embarrassing themselves and being misunderstood as incompetent.
“What becomes important is that when you account, the questions and answers need to be articulated from knowledge and that can be done using any language,” adds Professor Xulu.
The scholar also stressed the need to restore the dignity and decorum of Parliament, saying that language inclusivity is essential to achieving a more respectful and representative democracy.
“Parliament, with the coming of the EFF in 2014 has become a joke in terms of how people disrespect one another, the type of language they use, disrespecting one another and the fighting spirit which doesn’t take the country anywhere or even address the issues at stake.”
Professor Xulu says where there is no thought, there’ll always be vulgar language.
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    Equating language with intelligence is outdated and shortsighted: Cultural expert Lindiwe Mpanza

Written by: Lindiwe Mpanza

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