Please don't catch this buzz

I HATE buzzwords. Politicians use them liberally. They think it somehow makes them sound knowledgeable and "with it" and to be in the know. I say no-no!

What are buzzwords? They are words or terms that appear suddenly and stay around for a certain period of time and then disappear as fast as they appeared and another word becomes popular. In today’s tech-savvy world, the term “AI” has become common. Put on any politico’s speech on television or radio and slash me if they don’t use the term "grassroots" level’. Do they know the meaning? Have they ever brought themselves down to that level and experienced what the majority of their supporters know simply as existence?

The words "keynote address" flashed around at political rallies and indabas carry with it the necessary pomp and authority as one would accord the main speech. Until the time I heard the Nkandla tycoon say the following during an address: “What is this keynote address they say I must give. Hee hee hee. There is a key and there is a note.”

If the former number one doesn’t know the meaning, heaven help the man in the street - the one at grassroots’ level.

Speaking of number one, South Africa is not the only country that is guilty of this practice. I watch numerous American podcasts as much as I do South African ones. In the coming weeks I will be discussing more about podcasts. One podcaster I follow often is the controversial Piers Morgan. He is the king of buzzwords.

In recent times there were “opprobrium” (harsh criticism or censure), “ad hominin” (criticism of an individual rather than his stance) and his favourite - “woke culture”. In fact, he has written a book called Woke is Dead. The thing is when people hear these words spoken regularly, they try and emulate it. However, you can’t just use the word by squeezing it into a conversation when it is not practical. You may wish to sound clever, but in most cases it has totally the opposite effect.

Speak normally and “stay in your lane”. Did you see what I did there?

Here’s another one for you - social cohesion! Sounds idyllic. It would be great to have it nationwide. It gives one a nice warm feeling. One of togetherness. Until one smart aleck I heard on a radio news broadcast being interviewed destroyed it for me. Wanting to sound eloquent and wise, he said, “what we need is social coercion”.

Coercion as any wise man worth his salt would know means forced. The opposite of willing. The thing is in good public speaking, because you want to sound clever does not mean you can stick a clever word in anywhere. Mind you I could suggest where he could stick "coercion".

To a more poignant example. If I had to ask you to explain to me what the term “the poorest of the poor” means, could you? Well, a while ago, it was illustrated to me in full living colour and it sticks with me and haunts me regularly. I was looking out of the front window of my flat, eleven floors above the ground one day, taking in the sights and smells of our beloved city. Way down below was the open car park of our building, which was relatively full. My eye was drawn to a bakkie without a canopy which contained a few gardening tools.

There was just one chap sitting in the bin with his back to the cab, He was dressed in ragged work clothes – the typical garb of a casual labourer. A man who works and gets paid for the day, feeds himself from that meagre earning and takes home what little is left. I couldn’t believe the human drama that next played itself out eleven floors down.

Three young rascals approached him from different angles. Two of them caught his arms and pinned them to the body of the van, while the third scoundrel went through the unfortunate man’s pockets. They must have got away with just some cents. And a whole lot of nonsense. That incident taught me the meaning of one buzz-term at least. That unfortunate soul at the back of the bakkie was what you would call the “poorest of the poor”. His dire state did not stop three despicable human hyenas from making him feel even more worthless and depressed than when he left home early that morning.

Similar scenarios occur daily throughout our city and country. Its time our political caretakers stop with the buzzwords and are more proactive in getting rid of crime. In recent months we have been inundated with wanton killings of our elderly, some by the design of their own progeny. Young ones are being kidnapped and sold into slavery or killed for black magic purposes. Bright futures have been cut short. People who could build this country are snuffed away with regularity.

Here’s a buzz term for the fat cat politicos – “criminals are getting away with murder!”. Literally. Do something about it. Enough already. If you can’t do your designated job, kindly buzz off.

Ravi Govender is a former POST sub-editor and Lotus FM radio presenter. He is a published author, a freelance editor and film producer in training. He can be contacted at: [email protected]

** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media. 

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