IMPOLITENESS STRATEGIES IN SELECTED POSTS AND READERS' COMMENTS OF NIGERIANS OVER THE 2023 REMOVAL OF FUEL SUBSIDY

Abstract

This study seeks to investigate the impoliteness strategies cited in
the readers' comments of selected online posts concerning the
recent removal of fuel subsidy in Nigeria by the present government.
Previous studies on impoliteness strategies have focused more on
social interviews, television shows, political speeches, courtroom
interactions, among many others. However, impoliteness strategies
in readers' comments, especially on sensitive issues like the removal
of fuel subsidy, have not been adequately represented in linguistic
scholarship. Impoliteness strategies are communicative strategies
employed intentionally to cause or provoke a social conflict with the
addressee. The data for the analysis were sourced from readers'
comments on selected online posts on Twitter by Daily Post Nigeria.
About 50 readers' comments were downloaded and subjected to
linguistic analysis using Culpeper's (1996) Model as its theoretical
framework. impoliteness strategies such as bald on record
impoliteness strategy, positive impoliteness strategy, negative
impoliteness strategy, and mock or sarcasm impoliteness strategy,
were identified. The findings from this research reveal positive
impoliteness strategy has the highest usage in the readers' comments
and that all the identified impoliteness strategies were used by the
masses in their comments as linguistic tools to channel their anger
on those in support of the removal of fuel subsidy and to convey a
profound message indirectly to the appropriate authority about the
issue. Also, some tones of political and ethnic differences were
found in some of the readers' comments, which can ignite political
and ethnic conflicts. The study recommends that there should be
critical vetting of impolite and negative comments by the social
media background check to avoid societal disputes, and
confrontations.