A war of words erupted on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday between Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser on Public Communication to President Bola Tinubu, and Phrank Shaibu, Senior Special Assistant to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, following a disagreement that spiralled from public policy into a debate over grammar.

The exchange began after Onanuga reacted to reports of vandalism affecting ongoing rehabilitation work on the Ilesha–Ibadan Expressway. In a post on his verified X handle, @aonanuga1956, at about 8:09 a.m., the presidential spokesman called for drastic action against those sabotaging public infrastructure.

“Just shoot these unconscionable vandals/thieves at sight. They are the worst species of citizenship,” Onanuga wrote.

Hours later, Shaibu responded via his handle, @phrankangel, condemning the statement as reckless and unlawful. He argued that no government official had the authority to advocate extrajudicial killings.

“As a government spokesman, you cannot call for citizens to be ‘shot at sight.’ That is not law enforcement; it is lawlessness,” Shaibu said.

“Nigeria is not a killing field. Crimes are handled through arrest, investigation and the courts — not instant death orders from reckless statements.”

Shaibu further warned that such rhetoric could be extended to protesters or critics, adding pointedly: “I just hope you haven’t joined the smoking gang.”

Later that night, Shaibu returned to the thread, this time shifting focus to what he described as a grammatical error in Onanuga’s original post. At about 9:37 p.m., he argued that the correct expression should be “shoot on sight,” not “shoot at sight.”

Onanuga responded the following morning, dismissing the criticism and insulting Shaibu. “Foolish boy. Both usages are correct. Upgrade your grammar,” he wrote at about 9:12 a.m.

Shaibu replied with a lengthy rejoinder, presenting what he framed as a lesson in English usage. Without responding in kind to the insult, he insisted that “shoot on sight” is a fixed idiom and not interchangeable with “shoot at sight.”

Fixed idioms are not open to distortion or creative rearrangement,” Shaibu wrote, adding that misused expressions reflect poor command of the language.

“It smacks of wretched illiteracy to argue that such expressions can be used interchangeably,” he said, recommending grammar textbooks for further study.

As of press time, Onanuga had not responded to Shaibu’s final post, bringing the public exchange between the senior aides of Nigeria’s two leading political rivals to a pause. (The Guardian)

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