Walks, not Works, of Life

SATURDAY EXPRESSION

With Ebere Wabara
ewabara@yahoo.com, 08055001948

“THE enthusiastic participation by all Nigerians from all works (walks) of life….”
“…an indelible statement that inspite (in spite) of the challenges that currently exist….” (‘Currently’ is otiose here)
“…and All the Governors (needless capitalization) who attended the epoch making (epoch-making) event.” Except if ‘epoch’ is the event maker!
“We are proud of the President’s Pan Nigerian (sic) outlook….” This way: the President’s pan-Nigeria outlook
“Sisters arrested over (for) attempt to smuggle marijuana to brother”
“Group condemns INEC (INEC’s) handling of PVC in Lagos”
“We are eternally appreciative to (sic) be part of the ongoing Transformation agenda which has recorded irreversible growth for the Oil and Gas Industry.” (Full-page advertorial by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and signed by its Management) A rewrite: We are eternally appreciative of being part of the ongoing….
“I…of the Niger Delta Development Commission on behalf of the management and staff of the Commission felicitates (felicitate) with….”
“…especially in this (these) turbulent times in our journey to great nationhood.” (Source: as above)
“Mgbidi Boys (Boys’) Secondary School (1982 Set) and Classmates of Senator Hope Uzodinma”
THE NATION ON SUNDAY POLITICS of May 7 contributed the next two wrongs: “Another party source said the elders are (were) considering the consensus option.”
“…used the authority of the party’s extraordinary convention held in Abuja a forth-night (sic) ago….” Spell-check: fortnight
“Ilorin residents groan as pure water scarcity worsens” Middle Belt Today: sachet water
“Unity Bank releases names of debtors” Why not debtors’ names, especially for headline purposes?
“Ajimobi will break second term (second-term) jinx”
“Intelligent EMUI 3.0 with gravity sensing (gravity-sensing) technology”
“LG boss assures on democracy dividend” Who did the chairman assure?
“At both the Enugu and Nsukka campuses of the university.…” (THISDAY, May 4) On (not at) both the campuses…
“The commission did analysed the memorable…” I don’t need to analyze the tense problem in the extract.
“It is simplistic to think that every decisions will be accepted by everybody.” Every decision or all decisions
“It’s constitution is over 200 years old and was drafted by just 55 men.” The possessive form of ‘its’ does not require an apostrophe.
“Robbery tribunal sworn-in” ‘Sworn in’, a phrasal verb, cannot function as a compound word.
“The veil of enemity between.…” Get it right: enmity.
“…the arrogance of certain persons connected directly or indirectly make me nervous….” The arrogance…makes me nervous.
“He had reflected back to (reflected on) this time two years ago.…” Yank off ‘back’ which smacks of crass illiteracy.
“However, with series of painstaking explanations.…” A series of…
“On my way to work, last week Wednesday….” Simply last Wednesday or Wednesday, last week: the excerpt is odd.
“And that is, the Nigerian police has not failed.” The Nigerian police have
“…the nation’s enormous human and material resources would blossom resulting eventually into (sic) economic buoyancy.” Resulting in economic buoyancy
“The campaign abroad is that Nigeria is on the verge of a huge conflagration.” (THISDAY, The Sunday Edition, May 7) ‘Conflagration’ does not need any amplification (huge).
“It is true that majority of us do not want to see Nigeria break.” A/the majority of us.…
“They were thought (what!) how to use cutleries as Frenchmen.” I was taught by my current dictionaries that ‘cutlery’ is non-count. And ‘thought’ for ‘taught’? Could it be ignorance or carelessness?
VANDALIZATION (also vandalism) is a variant of vandalism that is not so popular in terms of usage because it is often used in Law in a specialized manner.
A more perfect or perfect union? I convened a national conference where recommendations and resolutions were reached towards a ‘more perfect (perfect or nearly/possibly/probably perfect union. This is imitation of ‘we’. The people of the United States in order to form ‘a more perfect’ union in the Constitution of the United States adopted in March 1789. ‘Perfect’ is an absolute superlative. It is not modified, qualified or amplified. ‘More perfect’ is un-English, un-presidential! We can correctly say or write nearly/possibly/probably perfect or unique (not more perfect or most perfect). Keep up the good work, brother.
‘Flag off’ means to start an event: it may be found in a standard dictionary. Therefore, some writers have popularized its usage. Users will continue to argue about correct usage.

FEEDBACK
FACE mark in Africa transcends mere decoration. It connotes ethnicity/culture. So, OBJ has tribal marks on the face. The marks can as well be on other parts of the body (especially in the olden days) The English language should be adapted to portray intended expression and not to please native speakers. This is the essence of linguistics. May God deliver us from colonialism. (MODUPE ADEGBORO, 07030759108)
IT is incorrect for RayPower in its Nigeria Today News (May 8) to use ‘wake-keep’ instead of ‘wake’. (KOLA DANISA, 07068074257)
I find your column WORDSWORTH profound, an asset to the media and all users of the English language. (OGOCHUKWU, 08033812451)
“This piece does not intend to whip-up (whip up) ethnic sentiments….”

IGP’s Embarrassing Partisanship
Simeon Nwakaudu

W
hen I pitied the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris in one of my write-ups earlier in the year, it was simply because I saw very clearly, a man out to destroy the Nigerian police because of his disgraceful love for partisan politics. Indeed, because of his “covet” membership of the APC.Like a man on a mission against the nation, this IGP has reduced the Nigerian police into a gang of electoral fraudsters, bent on destroying the foundations of democracy, just because he has been conscripted to do his master’s bidding.
IGP Ibrahim Idris, by any stretch of imagination is the worst thing to happen to the police. He has thrown away the garb of neutrality and adorned the broom of the APC. Not even Oyegun and his failing friends propel the APC more than IGP Ibrahim.
Today, leaders of the APC are his defenders; his ever present cheerleaders. In IGP Ibrahim Idris, the APC has found a ruthless partner, ever ready to help them cover their political weaknesses.
On December 10, 2016, IGP Ibrahim Idris sent 28,000 policemen, 20 gunboats, police helicopters, horses, dogs and deadly snipers to manipulate the Rivers rerun in favour of the APC. Everywhere these compromised policemen went; they left a tale of ballot box snatching, deaths, robbery, injuries on electoral officials and unprintable actions on law-abiding citizens.
The Rivers Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) led by one Akin Fakorede was turned into Special Election Rigging Squad (SERS). Wherever election was concluded, Akin Fakorede or his men would rush there to either snatch result sheets or disrupt the result declaration process.
In many instances, these deadly policemen were caught on video manipulating the electoral process or shooting sporadically with the intention to rig.
On one particular instance, (December 12, 2016) Akin Fakorede was captured on video at the Rivers East Senatorial District collation centre attempting to disrupt collation of results and snatch same for the APC. The police embarrassed Nigeria in concert with other security agencies.
No rerun elections held in Rivers South-east where SARS and army personnel overpowered electoral officials and took election materials to a private home belonging to one of the candidates of the APC. The deadly actions of the police and the military in this senatorial district were captured on tape.
Rather than show remorse for his crime against democracy, IGP Ibrahim Idris lured hatchet online writers to unleash shameless negative propaganda against the Rivers State governor, the government and her people.
He set up a kangaroo committee headed by one Damian Okoro to justify the police descent into the political arena for the purpose of election rigging. The selection of Okoro was another fraud. IGP Idris mischievously placed an Igbo man in a bid to authenticate his fraud. Aside Okoro, 80 per cent of the members of the kangaroo committee were of northern extraction. They went ahead to dance naked in the public.
The police killed, maimed and stole part of the mandate of Rivers people. Yet it was the police under IGP Idris that blamed the victim, Rivers people.
IGP Idris before, during and after the rerun elections acted as if he was a candidate running for elections in Rivers State. He toyed with the security details of Governor Wike and deliberately put an elected governor’s life at risk. He withdrew the governor’s Chief Security Officer, his ADC, Orderly and the majority of the security details to expose the governor to harm. He emboldened Akin Fakorede to metamorphose into an electoral terror in Rivers State.
On December 12, 2016, some policemen attached to the Rivers State Governor defied the IGP and stopped Akin Fakorede from harming Governor Wike as instructed. The IGP summarily dismissed them and blamed the policemen for the electoral woes of his political party, the APC.
IGP Ibrahim Idris by setting up the Investigative Panel, sought to become a judge in his own case. He wanted to become a saint, even in hell.

For the sake of protecting the nation’s democracy, Governor Wike as a law-abiding leader approached the court on the Investigative Panel set up by the IGP to justify the fraud and violence the police unleashed on the people of Rivers State during the December 10, 2016 rerun elections.
As an undisputed defender of Nigeria’s democracy, he took the step on behalf of the Rivers people – under siege by the nation’s police.
On Tuesday, May 9, 2017, “the Federal High Court in Abuja declared as illegal, the Special Joint Investigative Panel that was constituted by the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Idris Ibrahim, to uncover those behind the violence that marred the December 10, 2016, legislative rerun elections in Rivers State.
“Justice Gabriel Kolawole described the Police probe panel which included operatives of the Department of State Service, DSS, as “a strange contraption whose existence will create legal doubt”. Justice Kolawole held that the 15-man Special Joint Investigative Panel is a body unknown to any law in the country. He maintained that neither the Police Act, Security Agencies Act nor the 1999 Constitution, as amended, empowered the IGP to set up and co-opt the DSS which is not answerable to him but to the presidency, into the Rivers rerun probe panel. “
If the IGP has any modicum of respect for decency left, he must resign his commission and formally join his friends and family in the APC. This declaration by the Federal High Court, in Abuja has brought to the fore, the damage that the IGP and his mischievous colleagues in some other security agencies have done to the electoral system.
Why must IGP Ibrahim Idris be in the forefront of the illegal struggle to make Nigeria a one-party state? Why is the IGP ready to unleash violence on Rivers people just because they have pitched their tent with the PDP?
The IGP and those beating the evil drum for him must respect the will of Rivers people.
Under the leadership of IGP Ibrahim Idris, the security situation in the country is degenerating daily, with the police failing to act.
I like to remind the IGP that Nigerians still remember that he was the Commissioner of Police in Kano State during the 2015 Presidential Election when the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner was murdered in a questionable arson after fantastic results were churned out for the APC. That result is still being questioned by researchers and the international community.
The Abuja Federal High Court judgment is an indictment on IGP Ibrahim Idris’s love for illegality and electoral fraud. He may have federal resources to sponsor online propaganda, but with all his mischief-making, history will never be kind to him.
For me, the most important takeaway in the indictment of IGP Ibrahim Idris is the fact that he will soon account for the blood of Rivers people shed by his evil Special Election Rigging Squad (SERS).
Pix: Idris.jpg