Can fallacy beat genuine debate on Tanzania-Dubai port pact?

By Adonis Byemelwa

A Tanzanian billionaire, Mr Rostam Aziz, has recently been popular in social media after the debate on a maiden Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between Tanzania and Dubai on port operations in which the key arguments among CCM cadres have been more directed at attacking personalities than issues found in a ‘contentious’ contract.

The business tycoon was also seen at the Serena Hotel think-tank plenary discussion that involved, political analysts, among others, Mr. Stephen Wassira, media guru, Jenerali, Ulimwengu, Prof Kitila Mkumbo, Mr Godbless Lema, ACT Wazalendo leader, Zitto Kabwe and many others.

The IGA between Tanzania and Dubai – which aims at enhancing economic and social cooperation between Tanzania and the Emirati of Dubai to expand and improve Tanzania ports - has been greeted with a heated debate among members of the public, who demanded more explanations from the government on the terms and conditions.

But speaking last week during a national dialogue themed "protecting and promoting national cohesion in times of political and economic reforms, some leaders said it was not a bad thing to attract private investment in Tanzania’s ports, noting however that it was shocking to note that the debate was taking a political tone.

"It is wise to use Dar es Salaam and other ports to shape our economy… It is so sad that the economic and trade debate has been more of politics and activism," said tycoon Rostam Aziz.

He said it is not bad to have debates but that there was a need to conduct such dialogues in a constructive manner.

In a new twist, Mr Rostam has vehemently spent much of his time attacking Dr Wilbrod Slaa’s personality, charging that, the former catholic cleric should not be listened to as he had lost faith before members of the community after he put tolls down from priesthood, leave alone decamping to the unknown party against the Chadema party, where he had served as the Secretary-General.

The attack on personality traits is Ad hominem, a Latin word referring to types of fallacious arguments. Typically, Mr Rostam Aziz is using a rhetorical strategy by attacking the character, motive, or some other attribute of Dr. slaa, making an argument rather than attacking the substance of the DP World contract argument itself.

What is done by even other CCM cadres like Fredy Lowassa who had also told people in his constituency to stop discussing the big national issues like Ports contact but instead focus on family matters is a tactic to avoid genuine debate by creating a diversion to some irrelevant but often highly charged issue. The most common form of this fallacy is "A makes a claim x, B asserts that A holds a property that is unwelcome, and hence B concludes that argument x is wrong".

The valid types of ad hominem arguments are generally only encountered in specialized philosophical usage. These typically refer to the dialectical strategy of using the target's own beliefs and arguments against them, while not agreeing with the validity of those beliefs and arguments.

Surely, Mr Aziz knows the nitty-gritty of the contract and its aftermath but he tries to make fool the majority. The mimic has gone further into hiring the “Minyama Wasafi” media broadcasters to water down the genuine debate.

Many contemporary politicians routinely use ad hominem attacks, which can be encapsulated in a derogatory nickname for a political opponent like Kenyatta’s followers did by attacking Odinga during the heated presidential race, charging that the latter was a Luo, therefore, an uncircumcised presidential hopeful.

The fallacy was committed to putting Kenyans off-track against Odinga’s whiplash at Kenyatta’s cases at the Hague and the Mungiki conundrum.

This fallacy occurs when, instead of addressing someone's argument or position, you irrelevantly attack the person or some aspect of the person who is making the argument.

The fallacious attack can also be directed to membership in a group or institution.

Through ad hominem tactics, the business tycoon lashes out at the former ambassador accusing him of being paid a colossal amount of cash to abandon his party, adding that the former Chadema cadre lacks credibility to speak to the public about national interest in the DP World contract.

Despite being a commerce guru and reputable politician, Mr. Rostam Aziz had joined the Joseph Msukuma Kasheku and Livingstone Lusinde’s bandwagon, who called a press release that saw journalists scratching heads to find a scoop about the DP World deliberations in parliament against discussing what Freeman Mbowe said on a zoom network in Italy.

The duo, who are accused of benefiting from the Dubai voyage for part operations familiarization, took much time to attack persons rather than specifically focusing on the contents of the contract in question.

Instead of questioning people’s level of patriotism, all CCM cadres were seen in broad daylight as saying that any agenda fronted by the head of State should not be opposed. But I think it's time for well-wishers of the ruling party; the die-hard carders should, at least, rid Tanzanians of confusion.

There is confusion because common people do not know whom to trust between the educated against those who claim to have made it to Parliaments over majority support and financial muscles.

For example, one of the cadres was asked by journalists to justify the rumours that went viral accusing him of being given a posh car to facilitate a smooth parliamentary debate on the DP World contract, instead of responding to the claims, he ended up bragging about his wealth, charging that he owns many apartments in major cities and fleet of vehicles, which he had offered to his electorates, expounding that, based on such amassed wealth, he could hardly be bribed to support the contentious DP World contract deliberations Parliament.

It is rather foolhardy to think that a rich man can one day be such satisfied that they stop thinking about collecting more wealth! Many dubious and dubious deals like EPA and Dowans were signed by super tycoons who could seem satisfied before the eyes of the poor.

Poverty is not to blame for legislators who find themselves trapped to concede impromptu passing of bad bills because they are the ones believed to have been paid more handsomely than any other public servant in the country.

Therefore, it suffices to say simply that government cadres should think of avoiding fallacy while debating the DP World Contract. Since we have the contract, let it be even translated into Kiswahili for uneducated lawmakers to understand it.

Doing so would help one to make a dichotomy between what Rostam stands for and how political pundits like Prof Tibaijuka, and Kitila believe in, leaving alone the legal luminaries from the Tanganyika Law Society, whose stance against the contract had now gone viral. Should we also call this misunderstanding? Probably not because more light is being shed against darkness.

 The Tanzanian government has avowedly endorsed the resolution on the Inter-governmental Agreement, with the process questioned by Professor Anna Tibaijuka, a former politician and United Nations official; claiming it was improper, stating what was needed to ratify the IGA was a secret ballot system, not an open one. The critical eye by a former university don is another light against Rostam Aziz’s ad hominem fallacy.

Adonis Byemelwa is an International Relations graduate, teacher, author and columnist. Hyperlink, [email protected]. +2555884436