Of pooling, ceasing

SAMPLE 1: “Reflecting on the direct primary, which has heralded the inevitability of a clash of interests and perspectives, Hamzat said the way forward was for like-minds to close ranks and pool resources together, forge a formidable front and advance the ideas that can serve the larger interest of party members…Thanking Hamzat for endorsing him, Sanwo-Olu with whom were his wife, Ibijoke reflected on their involvement in Lagos governance over the years…”(Lagos APC Endorses Sanwo-Olu, The Nation, 30 September, 2018)

We are interested in the expression, “pooling resources together.” We should feel happy that the writer is enlightened enough not to replace pooling with pulling in the context under consideration. The tendency seems to be widespread among Nigerian users to confuse pool with pull whenever there is a need to use expressions like the one under reference.

When they are interested in saying that a group of people contribute resources to achieve an end, some Nigerians would say: “Members of the family have been advised to pull their resources together and pay their father’s hospital bill” or “Residents pulled resources together to buy a vehicle needed to convey children to and from school” or “People should pull knowledge together for the development of their community.”

Each of those sentences has two problems. One, the word pull has been selected instead of pool. Two, the word together is redundant; that is, it serves no useful purpose, being not a ‘natural’ part of the idiomatic usage. The sentences are revised as follows: 1) Members of the family have been advised to pool resources and pay their father’s hospital bill. 2) Residents pooled resources to buy a vehicle needed to convey children to and from school. 3) People should pool knowledge for the development of their community.

Further usage examples: 4) A society will develop rapidly when its members pool and share wisdom. 5) In those days, farmers pooled their labour resulting in extensive and highly productive cultivation of land. 6) The time has come for scientists all over the world to pool and share knowledge. 7) The Minister of Finance has advised small scale businessmen to pool their money and start a larger, jointly owned business. 8) Three people can pool their savings and start something larger and more impressive. 9) Once they enter an exam hall, students are not expected or allowed to pool knowledge. 10) The purpose of this meeting is to pool ideas for the progress of our company.

At any rate, it will be a good idea for both the reporter and all other readers to note the difference between pool and pull and their respective collocation. Significantly, the difference in pronunciation is worth noting, for it would seem to me that the grave snare is constituted by the users’ pronunciation deficiency. The difference in pronunciation is not something to be glossed over. Good dictionaries and competent teachers will be of great help.

Next, we note the verb-form (were) occurring immediately after the relative pronoun, whom: “Sanwo-Olu with whom were his wife, Ibijoke, reflected on their involvement in Lagos governance over the years.” The verb (were) is clearly in its plural form. But we look in vain for a plural noun that motivated the reporter’s choice of the plural verb-form. Only one person was with Sanwo-Olu and that was his wife, Ibironke. It should surprise us that a single person is talked of in the plural. At any rate, the verb should be changed to its singular form:was.

Sample 2: “…Okanlawon ceased the opportunity to call for the proper rehabilitation of some of the former students that were actively involved in the struggle.”(June 12 Honours: Remember us too, The Sun, 17 June, 2018)

The word whose presence in the text interests us is ceased which occurs in the following context: “Okanlawon ceased the opportunity to call…”It should be obvious that the writer, cheated by a pronunciation weakness, has confused seize with cease.  This is a common error among Nigerian users of English.  The next task before us is to demonstrate the difference between seize and cease on the one hand, and the difference between both and size on the other.

• ESCAPING THE DEPENDENCY TRAP

Seize:

When you seize a thing, you take it by force or by law.

The following sentences illustrate how the verb is used:

The army first seized power in Nigeria in 1966

The police have seized the contraband.

They seized the thief by the hand.

The manager seized the opportunity of the industrial action to appoint people close to him into key positions.

The handsets were seized by the teacher because the pupils were playing with them while the class was in progress.

Acting on a court order, the EFCC has commenced the process of seizing the politician’s properties.

The boys seized the opportunity of their father’s absence to use his car.

The students should have seized the opportunity of the long strike to learn some trades.

The noun form of seize is seizure e.g.  The frequentseizure of power by the army has truncated the growth of democracy in developing countries.

Cease:

To cease is to stop or come to an end or go out of existence

Read the following sentences:

The law has ceased to exist.

The College has ceased offering courses in management.

He ceased coming to school last week.

The shenanigans of the politicians do not cease to intrigue international observers.

Lack of regular supply of electricity has forced many factories to cease operations.

The government’s involvement in the funding of such businesses will cease as from the next fiscal year.

Education ceases when life ceases.

The noise went on for hours without ceasing.

The word can also be used as a noun as shown in the sentences that follow:

He has been working without cease.

John has been writing without cease

Another noun form of the words is cessation:

Death is cessation of life.

He appealed for cessation of war.

Size:

The noun size has to do with dimension or measurement:

That shirt is not my size.

The blouse is a size or two too large.

That building is about the size of ours.

I’m trying to size him up.

Sentences (1) – (3) are about measurement or dimension.  In sentence (4),   the word size is used as a verb.  In that sense, it is a colloquial expression meaning to form a judgment or opinion about.

Please read my own sentences again and form sentences of your own using the words size.  Note the spelling and meanings.