EXPRESSION by Ebere Wabara
YOU are welcome to this quarter-end month. Let’s go sporting: “Inter banks on resurgence Lukaku” Either resurgent Lukaku or resurgence of Lukaku
“To win the battle ahead is the reason behind the calling of (on) a SAN….”
“Our foreign policy as double standards” Basic knowledge: double standard
“Lack of forum (quorum) forces Senate to adjourn” Do they ever form a quorum except when there is bribe money to be shared?
“Why June 12 presidential election was annuled” This way: annulled. The nostalgia about that poll lingers!
“Mother of raped girl demands for missing parts” ‘Demand’ does not admit ‘for’ when used as a verb.
“Hajj bound aircraft impounded” Little things that count: Hajj-bound (a hyphen, next time) aircraft.
“Artists unite to ward-off sale of National Theatre” Get it right: phrasal verbs do not admit hyphenation (ward off).
“It has happened in South Korea, where all the military presidents who, by the way, were responsible for their economic miracle were put behind bars and made to refund all their loots.” ‘Loot’ is uncountable.
“The police laid a siege on (to) the MASSOB headquarters in Okigwe, Imo State….”
“…the anti-crime vigilante (vigilance) out-fit (sic) operating in the South-Eastern commercial towns of Aba and Onitsha.”
“The police cannot win back the trust of Nigerians by firing first and asking questions later as it has (they have) just done in the Okigwe massacre.”
“With these uneducated boys joining (climbing or jumping on/aboard) the business bandwagon in droves…”
“…pooling resources together and founding conglomerates and multinational companies…” Delete ‘together’, please
“Every component that make (makes) up the car is imported and cannot qualify as a car manufacturing country.” And this: a car-manufacturing country.
“Chief Onyema Ugochukwu is from Abia and as such should represent not the interest of oil producing communities and the entire state in (on) the board.” And this, again: oil-producing community.
“The community demands range from employment opportunities, provision of basic infrastructure for host communities, compensation for environmental degradation resulting from oil exploration activities and (to) some extreme reparation from the period oil exploration began in the community.” No task: range from…to (not ‘and’).
“Italy clubs reject calls to foot violence bill” Get it right: Italian clubs.
“With no precedence (precedent) in place with regard to invoking the full powers of the law on the miscreants of the past….”
“CBN governor assures on cash distress” Tell us who the man assured!
“Experts proffer solution for pollution in oil and gas sector” No news: solution to (not for).
“I still receive my correspondences as a national vice-chairman for the South-
South zone.” ‘Correspondence’ does not take any inflection.
“There has been no mention of the citizens of each country holding a referenda to approve or disapprove what their governments think is good for them.” Singular: referendum; plural: referenda or referendums.
“…talkless of (let alone/not to talk of) taking them to the Promised Land.” ‘Talkless of’ smacks of illiteracy.
“What obtains now is a clear case of the presidents and heads of states of….” Strange union: heads of state (not states, which is implied).
“It was clear to me, the last time the General holstered his gun and stopped in his track (tracks), that he did it as a tactical withdrawal, knowing fully (full) well that he will not abandon that road permanently….”
“…in memory of the students that lost their lives in the mysterious fire incidence (incident) that gutted the female hostel of GSS, Gindiri, Plateau State.”
“The police officer said he had not read the constitution, it was a new document and that all they have been told is that any gathering or meeting of Nigerians require (requires) police permit.”
“On this basis, he ordered that we dispersed (disperse).”
“As early as 9 a.m. in the morning it is already hot.” ‘A.m.’ is a Latin phrase meaning ante meridiem (in the morning, before midday). So, ‘a.m. in the morning’ is sheer lexical atrophy.
“Consequent upon the above, we hereby pass a vote of confidence on (in) the governor….”
“Similar heated debates also marked the periods of long electioneering campaigns that usually preceded regional and federal elections.…” Either electioneering or campaign. Both cannot co-function.
“…theatres for every hot and stormy debates on the controversial issue of the equitable revenue allocation formula for the country.” This way: all hot and stormy debates or every hot and stormy debate.
“Not only because of his aversiveness to titles and temporal honours at a time when men in his position seek deification and shortcuts to fame.” A banker’s odyssey: averseness or aversion to titles.
“I recall the days I use (used) to have hot exchanges of words with some officers….”
“…it would mean that prayers of the faithfuls did not reach the ears of God….” No channel noise: the faithful (a collective term which does not take any alphabetical interjection).
“But it happens to be a dirty war out there, and incumbents are never known to lose elections in (on) these shores even with the bad governance of our past years.”
“Even the most learned members of the clergy in the state have declared that they have no moral dilemma about the activities of the vigilante (vigilance) group, as they have also dared anyone to proffer a better solution.”
“…they continued to mop-up (mop up) violent criminals who have….”
“…one of the spiritual cogs in the wheel of Nigeria’s match (march) to greatness.”
“Access to education, clean water, jobs, health facilities are (is) grossly minimal in (on) the continent.” The key word is ‘access’—not the infrastructural elements!
“So the inefficiency of government agencies are (is) to be paid for by us.”
