A heated immigration debate on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has taken a surprising turn into a linguistic showdown after a British user claimed the UK care sector had become “critically dependent on Nigerians who barely speak English.”
The controversy began when Rachel Clarke (@doctor_oxford) posted a tweet defending the role of immigrant carers in the UK, writing:
“One in five of the UK’s care workforce have a non-British passport. Starmer would have us believe these carers are the ‘squalid’ result of a ‘failed experiment’. I say they do vital, necessary, humane, skilled work and they are worth their weight in gold.”
In response, a user tweeting as @BasedNorthmathr, identified as Angantýr, commented:
“Why did we make our care sector critically dependent on Nigerians who barely speak English and each bring with them 3 dependents?”
The remark ignited swift and widespread backlash from Nigerian users, who took offense not only at the perceived xenophobia but also the attack on their language proficiency. One of the most prominent responses came from Nigerian commentator Ifedayo Johnson (@ifedayo_johnson), who publicly challenged Angantýr to an English proficiency test.
“I’m openly challenging you to an English Language Skills test—writing, listening, speaking, and reading. If your overall score is higher than mine, I’ll quietly pack my bags and leave this country within 24 hours. But if I outscore you, you’ll keep your mouth shut and never again question or disrespect Nigerians’ English skills,” Ifedayo tweeted.
Angantýr accepted the challenge, responding: “Okay, I’ll do it.” However, Ifedayo escalated the exchange by proposing a second phase: a comparative assessment of each party’s economic contribution to the UK, including taxes paid and public benefits received.
“Let’s take it to a Twitter Space for transparency. After the language test, I’ll challenge you again—this time to compare what we contribute to the UK economy and what we take from it. If I take more than I contribute, I’ll leave. If my contribution outweighs yours, you must stop disparaging Nigerians,” he wrote.
Angantýr later clarified he was only agreeing to the language test, stating: “I’ll happily do an IELTS and we can compare scores. I’ll get back to you.”
The backlash didn’t end there. Another Nigerian user, @agodliveshere, offered a £3,000 prize for a separate language challenge involving 50 objective questions and two 1,000-word essays. Angantýr accepted but has not responded to efforts to coordinate the details.
When yet another Nigerian, Sam Omezia (@SOmezia1), issued a similar challenge, Angantýr declined, citing a full schedule: “Sorry man, I’m fully booked.”
Meanwhile, other users began correcting Angantýr’s own grammar. His use of “each bring” was flagged as incorrect, with users pointing out it should have been “each brings.”
“Mr Speaker, shouldn’t it be ‘each brings’ instead of ‘each bring’ for subject-verb agreement? Just a Nigerian correcting a Brit who barely writes well,” wrote @YNyakno.
Many Nigerians defended their language skills, noting that English is Nigeria’s official language and the primary medium of instruction from kindergarten through university.
“We learnt it forcefully, and we’ll beat you—the colonizers—silly. When you hear Nigerians, you will run,” quipped @seyfunmi.
Others highlighted their academic qualifications as evidence of their English proficiency.
“There is no Nigerian here that doesn’t speak good English and hold at least a BSc. I have both BSc and MSc and I speak English better than you, bro,” said @ogunlola23.
“You’ll be shocked that we speak and write better English than a lot of ‘yous’. We got educated in English. Your ageing population and benefit system made people lazy—immigrants aren’t your problem,” added @Dieux_oint.
Another user, @omorogiec, wrote:
“Nigeria is an English-speaking country. From kindergarten to university, we use English. And 95% of Nigerians in the UK care sector are degree holders. Immigrants aren’t your issue—stop scapegoating them.”
The trending exchange comes amid increasing scrutiny of the UK’s immigration policies, particularly in sectors like healthcare and social care that heavily rely on migrant labor.
