Moves and order

SAMPLE 1: “Last week, Tinubu was reported to have stated that his moves to become to become President Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate was prevented by Saraki and el-Rufai.”(Saraki, Others Right to Block Tinubu’s VP Bid—Northern Elders, The Punch, Sunday, April 30, 2017)

Let’s note the singular verb-form (was) which occurs in the following context: “his moves to become President Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate was prevented by Saraki and el-Rufai.” As we have noted, the verb is singular. Next, we want to identify the subject noun phrase whose singular form must have guided the writer in his choice of a singular verb-form. In all probability, the reporter was inspired by the singular noun, mate, closest to the verb-slot. However, no logic, no grammatical principle supports any connection between the noun mate and the verb-slot as far as concord is concerned. The relationship exists only in the imagination of the reporter.  The only noun that is logically and grammatically related to the verb-slot is moves, a noun that is obviously in its plural form—what with its final -s. Yes, moves were prevented, and not: *moves was prevented… At any rate, the plural form (were) should replace the singular form (was) in the context under review.

Sample 2: “In a society where pride and hypocrisy have become the other of the day, Captain Idahosa Wells Okunbo is refreshingly different.”(Captain Hasa Deserved anguard Award, The Sun, Sunday, April 16, 2017)

The expression we are interested in is the other of the day, an expression that occurs in the following context: “pride and hypocrisy have become the other of the day.” The word whose form seems to distort the semantic import and the idiomatic integrity of the expression is other. The writer grossly betrays a pronunciation weakness in his choice of this word rather than order. When we say that something has become the order of the day, we mean it has become the common practice. The error is an example of how a pronunciation lapse can generate grammatical/lexical/semantic awkwardness.

The more commonly used expression, in order to is frequently presented by some Nigerian writers as:*in other to. As a way of demonstrating the usage differences between the two words, we present a large number of sentences. (The discussion of this matter has featured repeatedly in this place in recent times. We should not be tired of presenting and re-presenting certain issues until they are absolutely clear to our readers.)

Now read the following sentences: 1) Corruption and election-rigging have become the order of the day. 2) Examination malpractices are the order the day in our schools and colleges. 3) Before abortion becomes the order of the day a more stringent law must be enacted to curb it. 4) We should never allow religious riots to become the order of the day in our country. 5) In many of our large cities, indiscriminate dumping of refuse is the order of the day. 6) The Treasury Single Account (TSA) was introduced in order to prevent public officers from exceeding their spending limits. 7) Nigerian languages and cultures are being taught in public schools in order to wean our citizens from unhealthy attachment to foreign languages and culture. 8) Regular parents-teachers meetings are held in order to foster a sustained dialogue between parents and teachers. 9) Politicians hold their meetings at night in order to prevent other people from having access to their information. 10) The pregnant woman was immediately subjected to surgery in order to prevent her from labouring too much. 11) The coach subjected his team to regular rigorous training in order to guarantee a brilliant international outing. 12) A lot of stones and cement were used in order to give the building a strong foundation. 13) He told so many lies in order to present himself as a man of integrity. 14) Many advertisements were placed in newspapers in order to generate goodwill for the organization. 15) Many more hands were employed in order to cope with the volume of production this season requires.

The word order can be used in a variety of other ways. Now read the following sentences: 1) It is the constitutional duty of the police to maintain law and order. 2) People will be attended to in the order in which they arrived. 3) The order of service is contained in the pamphlets distributed to the worshippers. 4) No particular order is followed in the way doctors attended to their patients. 5) The chief executive has given an order which cannot be countermanded. 6) The restriction order in that part of the country has been lifted. 7) Since his assumption of office, the president has been trying to put things in order. 8) The machine is out of order and it will require a huge sum of money to fix it. 9) It may interest you to note that I don’t take orders from just anybody. 10) The company has placed an order for a new generator. 11) The army General ordered his men to leave the city. 12) Students were ordered to stay away from the venue of the meeting.

Next we illustrate the usage of the word other. The word can be used in a number of different senses. Read the following sentences: 1) Apart from excessive cash in circulation, there are other factors responsible for inflation. 2) Apart from Christianity and Islam, there are other important religions in the world. 3) The first gentleman seems to be more responsible than the other two. 4) His father had other children by another wife. 5) There are many other things we need to discuss. 6) The other day he was saying something I didn’t quite understand. 7) I see no reason why the two friends should be quarrelling with each other. 8) There are many other books on the same subject. 9) There are situations other than this in which we can encounter similar challenges. 10) We live on the other side of the street. 11) The other false assumption is that life will go on forever. 12) My uncle’s other properties are in Abuja. 13) Some men discriminate against women. In other words, they feel they are superior to women. 14) Soldiers need to understand that this is a democracy and not military dictatorship. In other words, they should learn to submit themselves to civil authority. 15) Parents have a vital role to play in the moral upbringing of their children. In other words, parents should never leave the spiritual and moral destiny of their children entirely in the hands of teachers.