Phrank Shaibu, a senior special assistant to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and presidential spokeswoman Bayo Onanuga, has been involved in an internet spat.
The exchange followed Onanuga’s reaction to complaints of vandalism hampering rehabilitation work on the Ilesha–Ibadan Expressway.
The presidential assistant described vandals as “the worst species of citizens” and demanded that they be “shot on sight” in a post sent via his handle on Sunday morning.
However, Shaibu in a harsh response, denounced Onanuga’s remark, calling it as “lawlessness”.
Shaibu went on to say that no government representative should support extrajudicial measures, emphasizing that arrests, investigations, and the legal system should be used to deal with offenses.
In a follow-up post later that night, Shaibu turned focus to what he saw as a grammatical error in Onanuga’s comment, stressing that the correct word is “shoot on sight,” not “shoot at sight”.
Onanuga reacted the following morning, dismissing the complaint and claiming that both statements were correct, while telling Shaibu to “upgrade your grammar”.
Unfazed, Shaibu responded with a lengthy justification, claiming that “shoot on sight” is a set phrase that shouldn’t be changed.
He claimed that versions like “shoot at sight” are grammatical mistakes rather than appropriate substitutes and charged Onanuga with illiteracy for defending the usage.
