Tai Solarin University Graduate Challenges UK Man to English Proficiency Competition, Takes Big Risk

• A man said he is ready to take an English language proficiency test with a British man to prove that Nigerians are good at English
• The man, Ifedayo Johnson, who is a linguist, threw the challenge after the British man who said Nigerians could barely speak the English language
• Ifedayo pledged to pack his bags and leave the United Kingdom should he lose the test, which is scheduled to be held on Sunday, May 18

A Nigerian man is set to go head-to-head in an English language proficiency competition with a British man.

The man, Ifedayo Johnson, who lives in the UK, stated that if he lost in the competition, he would pack his things and leave the UK.

It all started when a British man, Angantýr, made disparaging remarks about Nigerians who work in the UK care sector, saying they 'barely speak English.'

He had said:

“Why did we make our care sector critically dependent on Nigerians who barely speak English…”

Nigerian to compete with UK citizen on English proficiency

This comment did not sit well with Ifedayo Johnson, who promptly put out a post challenging Angantýr to an English language competition.

He said:

"Hello @BasedNorthmathr I’m openly challenging you to an English Language Skills test. This would entail Writing, Listening, Speaking and Listening tests. If your overall score is higher than mine, I’ll quietly pack my bags and leave this country within 24 hours. But if I score higher than you, you’ll keep your mouth shut and never again question or disrespect the English Language skills of any Nigerian. Let me know when you’re ready so we fix the date and other modalities. About time y’all are put where you belong."

The British fellow accepted the challenge, and it has been scheduled to be held on Sunday, May 18.

In another post, Ifedayo said the challenge was in good spirit, noting that it would hold by 7:45pm.

His words:

"Hello everyone, @BasedNorthmathr and I have both agreed to have the English Language Skills Challenge on Sunday, 18th May, 2025 at 7:45pm. The challenge will take place on Twitter Space and we’re working on enabling screen sharing so everyone can watch us take the test in real time. I will be sharing further details and modalities in due time. The Twitter Space will be created shortly and everyone will be able to set up reminders. If you’d like to support or contribute in any way, feel free to send a DM. PS: This challenge is all in good spirit. A friendly intellectual exercise designed to showcase our language skills with mutual respect. Let’s get this done and make a statement."

According to his profile, Ifedayo was the 13th Senate president of Tai Solarin University students' union.

See the post below:

Reactions as Nigerian challenges British man

@amechi_ozoemena said:

"That’s a true Nigerian, (we no dey carry last). And he isn’t playing I can assure you."

@Yombo__ said:

"But this stake is not balanced. Hmmm. I wish you the best, God be with you. Amen."

@Riiquequeen said:

"The odds are quite uneven. You get to upend your life and just get to be quite?"

Man living abroad uses Pidgin English to confuse Oyinbo man

In a related story reported by Legit.ng, a Nigerian man who lives abroad appeared in a hilarious video in which he was answering questions from an Oyinbo man.

The Oyinbo man had asked him what languages he could speak fluently, and the man said Pidgin was one of them.

When the Oyinbo man asked him to say something in Pidgin, he said he was angry that the Oyinbo man was asking him JAMB questions.

Proofreading by Nkem Ikeke, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng