Discursive Styles and Strategies in (De)Legitimising Support For Nigeria’s Cashless Policy on X

Abstract

The study explored how tweeters (de)legitimise support for the cashless policy implemented by the Central Bank of Nigeria in 2023. The study examined the language styles deployed by tweeters in (de)legitimatising support for the cashless policy, the interplay of other factors that impact tweeters’ (de)legitimation of support for the policy and the discursive styles deployed to (de)legitimise support for the cashless policy. Data were obtained from Twitter using SNScrape in Python, from January 2023 to April 2023. Leeuwen's (2007) legitimation theory and Ross and Rivers' (2017) delegitimation model formed the theoretical grounding for the analysis. The study observed the use of sarcasm, metaphors, verbally aggressive speeches, hyperboles, humour, optimism, evaluation and Twitter narratives as discursive strategies employed by Tweeters in (de)legitimising support for the economic policy. Also, specific economic factors like lack of infrastructure to aid the efficient running of the policy, poor online banking services, level of illiteracy as regards electronic banking, unstable power supply and poor internet connection have a major impact on (de)legitimising support for the policy and finally, discursive strategies such as rational, mythopoesis and authorisation (de)legitimation were deployed by Tweeters in (de)legitimising support for the cashless policy. The digital discourse analysis of tweets in this study confirms that the cashless policy, though having good potential, did more harm than good.