Using colourful words coated in legalese

PUBLIC Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane, in her many endless acrimonious legal skirmishes with both Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan and President Cyril Ramaphosa, always accuses these two adversaries of “ad hominem arguments or attacks or insults” and of resorting to “invectives”.

The court papers between Mkhwebane on one side, and Gordhan and Ramaphosa on the other, are inveighed or patently written with strong hostility on both sides.

It is as if they are trading and hurling insults at each other using pedantic and colourful language camouflaged in legalese and legal niceties.

Let us examine Mkhwebane's lexicon as to the meaning of “ad hominem”

attacks and “invectives” allegedly levelled at her by her protagonists.

Ad hominem argument comes from the Latin phrase “argumentum ad hominem” which literally means “argument against the person”.

So “ad hominem argument” is an irrelevant personal attack on someone's character or motive which does not address the actual issue at hand called “factum probandum” or “facta probanda” or facts in dispute.

The ad hominem attack is based on a person's social, political or religious views. Ad hominem arguments appeal to feelings or prejudices rather than intellect.

For example, Mkhwebane is accused of leaning in favour of the Radical Economic Transformation faction within the governing party.

The phrase “ad feminam argument”

is used specifically when the person receiving such criticism is female.

Ad hominem argument is regarded as a fallacy because it is misleading or an unsound argument.

“Invectives” simply means the usage of strongly attacking words or abusive rhetoric.

Now you know the contextual meaning of these words in politics and courtrooms.

So don't go nicknaming someone as “Ma-ad hominem”.

I once met two township klevas: the first one was called “Ma-criminal” who had a mean look and peculiar walking gait to fit and buttress his nickname; and the second character was called “Massacre”, who would to the applause of his friends swear that one day he will commit a massacre in his neighbourhood to make people fear him in reverence of his deed

(“uzobagcwalisela” in Tsotsi taal).

Ignorance is not only limited to these anti-social characters; blissful ignorance extends to politicians, social media users and even legal professionals who don't want to learn anything new or improve their vocabulary.