In Rabat, Morocco
Growing up in Kenya, I was made to believe that English was such a cool language to speak.
The mentality instilled was that it was such a classy language to communicate in.
All the well-off families had their kids speaking English. In school, people like me who did not have a good grasp of the Queen’s language were laughed at.
And so, having grown in Kisumu – known for its heavy Luo dialect – for a better part of my life, all I wanted to do was to know how to speak English. Perfectly.
In primary and secondary school, it grew to be one of my favourite subjects. Because I was on a mission, remember?
Somewhere in between, I was the English captain in my school and was one of the best orators. Any time someone was needed to read the set books, all eyes pointed towards me. And I gladly obliged.
Fast forward to December 2025 where I am covering my first Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Morocco and I have come to the sad realization that my beloved language is overrated. Less grand than I even thought of it.
Most of the people here do not understand English. And if they do, it is because they are probably making a living off of it. Teachers, hotel receptionists, interpreters.
The rest are not even embarrassed to acknowledge they know nothing about it.
Life here revolves around French and Arabic. And most of the fans and countries that have travelled here are French speakers.
I did basic French while in Form 1 and 2 at the great Kisumu Boys campus, so I have scraped and misused every bit of my bonjour and merci.
The West African nations are proudly French, so they do not bother so much to pay attention to English.
For someone who grew up holding English to such high standards, my heart has been terribly broken to accept the fact that it is not all that.
Even the Confederation of African Football (CAF) place French ahead of English in their rankings.
Over the five days I have been here, I have slowly made peace with the situation on ground.
I have not been alone. The other 3 Kenyan sports journalists – Tabitha Makumi, Paul Nzioki, and Hussein Yusuf – who are also in Morocco have vowed to learn French immediately they land back home.
For now, au revoir!