ANALYSIS OF BOLA AHMED TINUBU’S 2023 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN SPEECH

Résumé

This study presents the Harrison et al. (2017) model of Speech Act analysis of Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 2023 campaign speech at Anambra. The study identified, categorised, and accounted for the speech acts performed by Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT). The speech was broken down into texts, and forty-five (45) tests were obtained for analysis. Using the qualitative and quantitative data analysis method, the data were coded as Text1 to Text 45. The study identified the five (5) key speech acts that were propounded by Harison et al (2017) -convention, intention, function, expression, and norm- and three (3) other peculiar speech acts -Norm/Intention, Function/Intention and Expression/Intention- which are products of the combination of two of Harison et al.'s (2017) speech acts to form a speech act. Two texts from each speech act found in the study were analysed, making a total of sixteen (16) texts analysed. Intention, with 44.4% frequencies of occurrence emerged the most frequently used speech act, followed by: Norm/Intention with 13.3% frequencies of occurrence, Norm with 11 %frequencies of occurrence, Convention with 8.9% frequencies of occurrence, Expression and Function with 6.7% frequencies of occurrence each, and finally, Function/Intention and Expression /Intention with 4.5% frequencies of occurrence respectively. The study revealed that Intention was the most frequently used speech act by BAT to convey his political aims and ambition so as to achieve his intention. The study concludes that this approach of inspiring and persuading the audience to get the audience’s votes by politicians, and in turn, attain their political intents, is a common phenomenon found in political speeches.