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“YOU have laid solid (a solid) foundation for public service and nation-building.”
“Zenith Bank would (will) NEVER call, SMS or e-mail (used as a noun here) requesting for your card details…or other account related (account-related) information (pieces of information).” (Full-page advertorial, THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER, September 12) Get it right: send an SMS or an e-mail. And this: ‘information’ is uncountable (“other information”). The usage of ‘would’ here means that there is a possibility that the bank may call clients—which clearly contradicts the emphatic ‘NEVER’! Do you understand? Safeguard your grammar because the English language is more than routine banking!
“Ugborodo women sustain siege on (to) Chevron tank farms”
“ASUU set up (sets up) committee to monitor members on (over) ‘sex for marks’ (‘sex-for-marks) menace”
“NCC toll free (toll-free) centre in Imo to fight insecurity, corruption”
“Lawmaker charges political office holders to be agent (agents) of wealth creation”
“15 winners emerge at (in) REEL Foundation young writers (writers’) challenge” (BUSINESS, September 16)
“NDDC: Akpabio seeks reapproachment (rapprochement) with NASS” (NATIONAL NEWS, September 16). This spelling misapprehension is scandalously embarrassing and vexatious!
“On COVID-19, he asked all member states (member-states) to pool their resources together…” We can gladly do away with ‘together’ in this extract because it is otiose.
“In Rwanda, the signs of change has (have) been marred by…”
“With a heart of felicitation and love, I wish to congratulate (I congratulate) my husband…over (on/upon) his merited doctorate (doctoral) award.”
“Your diligent nature and tenacity of purpose has (have) singled you out for recognition.”
“…but you have shown the world that good things comes (why?) to those who work for it (them).”
“NPFL title: Coach leads Rangers to promise land (sic)” Sports journalists: (the) Promised Land (take note of the capitalization)
“In spite of the current division amongst (among) members of the terrorist group…” ‘Amidst’, ‘amongst’, ‘whilst’, ‘join together’, ‘log of wood’, ‘heavy downpour’ (the list is endless!)…belong to ‘old school’!
“His present command and control (command-and-control) tactics must end.”
“…argues that ‘foreign terrorists’ are being treated with kid’s gloves.” Get it right: kid gloves
“I am sure those of them that participated in both competitions will tow (toe) the line of reasoning.”
“IGC sets (set) for 2020 Corporate Challenge Cup”
“Biafra asks Igbo to switch-off (switch off) phones…” Phrasal verbs do not admit hyphenation.
“…while incidences of diseases and death (deaths) have worsened.” Please note that even as ‘incidence’ is countable, it is usually singular.
“Lagos is a vibrant city with enormous potentials.” Either ‘potentialities’ or just ‘potential’ (without any inflection)
“Celebrating one of Plateau’s quintessential legal luminary (luminaries)…!”
“Your several (many) years of practice and public service as commissioner…for about nine years has (have) no doubt….” Preferably ‘many’
“I am no doubt confident that Plateau State, the National Assembly where you now serve as a (an) honourable member….”
“Ashes to beauty (Ashes-to-beauty) story of the camera”
“…brings to the fore issues concerning some non-governmental organizations set up under the pretext of helping the needy but turn out to be scams”
“If a guy likes me and he’s going online to check for my status…” Delete ‘for’ because it is redundant
“FG seeks China (Chinese) cooperation to tackle piracy in entertainment industry”
“Strenghtening (Strengthening) commitment”, but straightening
“He is a bogeyman who pushes, shoves, pulls, elbows and even scratch (scratches) players on the face…”
“CPC to clampdown on illegal microfinance banks” Phrasal verb: clamp down (two words).
“An acknowledged scholar, a distinguished statesman and a team leader per excellence” This way: leader par excellence.
“New trends in electioneering campaigns” Just electioneering or political campaigns ‘Electioneering campaign’ is sheer verbiage! ‘Electioneering’ encompasses campaign and other related electoral issues.
“Some countries have taken tobacco manufacturers to court for the damages their products cause.” The will to die: ‘damage‘ is uncountable, except in reparative applications for indemnity.
“With the launching (launch preferably) of the poverty alleviation (a hyphen) programme by the Federal Government, not a few Nigerians desire to see it effectively in place. “
“…what happened was that somebody filed a writ of summon.” This way (singular): a writ of summons; plural: summonses.
“It is the Federal Board that is always guilty of that, because it is them who take riff-raffs as welfare officers.” ‘Riff-raff’ is uncountable.
“Modern technology has reduced the world into (to) a hamlet where the inhabitants are their brothers’ keepers.” This way: brother’s keeper (fixed idiom), irrespective of the number of people involved.
“The coincidence in the timing of all those sleazy gossips in soft-sell magazines and the beginning of his fashion parade….” ‘Gossip’, in this context, is uncountable.
“More overaged players for youth soccer“ Get it right: overage players.
“Residents of some of the troubled spots in Libya in disarray” Witness to lexical mayhem: trouble spots.
“…rummaging all the bags and ransacking every nook and corner.” Stock expression: nook and cranny.
“The police requires (require) a redeemer who can uplift the Force from the battering it (they) suffered during the long years of militarization.”
“I inquired from those that appear to know and they said that the president is (was) roaming the country in the name of campaigns.”
“There is (are) no electricity, no security, no water, no roads, no health facilities in Nigeria.”
“Foreign companies will be falling over themselves (one another) to come and invest here if we get the 2023 elections right.”
“…given the lame-duck posture of the opposition parties, the APC simply held sway from the onset (outset).”
“Reactions on (to) the Pope’s visit, however successful, were mixed in Egypt, a country inhabited by a predominantly Muslim population.”
“Prior to the Pope’s visit, Egyptian Catholics have (had) opted out of the…”
“The first part was published last week Friday.” Monday politics: either last Friday or Friday, last week.
“Vigilante (vigilance) groups, committed to the enforcement of the by-law, are being set up.”
“Some of these areas include producing enough food to feed our teaming (teeming) population.”
“Rather, the money, including the N200 million per state released for special purposes, was diverted to other uses.” We certainly do not need the last three words in the extract, having been taken care of by ‘diversion’.
“Unless the detonating mechanism of extremist religious chauvinism is diffused” Get it right: defused (not diffused).
“They have decided to sheath their machetes and seek vengeance no more. “ Noun: sheath; verb: sheathe.
“The sources of revenue in a city like Lagos is very important.” Still on errors of attraction (more below): sources…are.
“…business downturn resulting to (in) drive-wandering.”
“…the rapaciousness of project contractors increase (increases) the country’s debt burden.”
“Senior civil servants’ union berate junior counterparts” Inside business: union berates.
“It’s the poet feared most, knowing fully (full) well that one of the….”
“The agitated crowd, who had been whipped to hysteria, demanded for his head…” To avoid mayhem, delete ‘for’, from the extract.
”…and which provides a noble and humanistic framework for relations between the state and citizens in (on) our continent.”
