Thinking like Nyerere’: Authority Argumentation by Quotation in Tanzanian Parliamentary Discourse
Journal of Humanities & Social Science (JHSS),
Vol. 13 No. 1 (2024)
Abstract
This article examines the manner in which members of parliament (MPs) from one
political group in Tanzania appeal to the figure of Mwalimu Nyerere through
quotations to back up what they are themselves saying, or attack the political actions
of other groups during parliamentary debates. The analysed instances of parliamentary
quotations are presented in extracts, which are sourced from two parliamentary
debates on the annual ministerial budget speeches by the then Minister for Labour
and Employment, and the Minister for Community Development, Gender and Children
in the 2015/16 fiscal year. The research data were collected from the website of the
Tanzanian parliament as online Hansard transcripts. The MPs’ authority arguments by
quotation are analysed from the perspective of pragma-dialectics to establish their
effectiveness and reasonableness. The findings indicate that the MPs from one political
group cite specific voices of Mwalimu Nyerere to suggest that they think like him, or
follow his footsteps; while those from the other political groups do not. The findings
further suggest that, while some of such arguments could be considered reasonable,
others do not satisfy the dialectical goal of reasonableness, although they seem to be
effective. The analysis of authority argumentation by quotation in the Tanzanian
parliament is significant for developing research interests in African parliamentary
discourse, and it contributes to the pragma-dialectical research on parliamentary
argumentation in Africa. Thus, it benefits researchers in African parliamentary
discourse, argumentation theory, discourse studies, and other related fields. Further
research can investigate other salient features of African parliamentary or political
discourse, including the role of metaphor and other figurative expressions in
influencing political decisions that influence the electorate.
Keywords
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- Antaki, C., & I. Leudar. 2001. Recruiting the Record: Using Opponents’ Exact Words in
- Parliamentary Argumentation. Text, 21(4): 467–488.
- Bjerk, P. 2017. Julius Nyerere. Athens: Ohio University Press.
- Brennan, J. R. 2015. Julius Rex: Nyerere through the Eyes of His Critics, 1953–2013. In M-A.
- Fouéré (Ed.): Remembering Julius Nyerere in Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es Salaam:
- Mkuki na Nyota: 143–169.
- Bunge la Tanzania. 2013. Kanuni za Kudumu Za Bunge. Dodoma: Bunge la Tanzania.
- Constantinescu, M-V. 2012. The Use of Quotations in the Romanian Parliamentary Discourse.
- In L. Ionescu-Ruxandoiu, M. Roibu, & M-V. Constantinescu (Eds.): Parliamentary Discourses
- Across Cultures: Interdisciplinary Approaches. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars: 263–282.
- Dibattista, D. 2004. Legitimising and Informative Discourse in the Kosovo Debates in the
- British House of Commons and the Italian Chamber of Deputies. In P. Bayley (Ed.): Cross-
- Cultural Perspectives on Parliamentary Discourse. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins:
- –184.
- Dickerson, P. 1997. ‘It’s Not Just Me Who’s Saying This ...’ The Deployment of Cited Others in
- Televised Political Discourse. British Journal of Social Psychology, 36: 33–48.
- van Eemeren, F. H. 2018. Argumentation Theory: A Pragma-Dialectical Perspective. Cham,
- Switzerland: Springer.
- van Eemeren, F. H., and T. Kruiger. 2015. Identifying Argumentation Schemes. In F. H. Van
- Eemeren (Ed.): Reasonableness and Effectiveness in Argumentative Discourse: Fifty Contributions
- to the Development of Pragma-Dialectics. Dordrecht: Springer: 703–712.
- Fouéré, M-A. 2015a. Julius Nyerere, Ujamaa and Political Morality in Contemporary Tanzania.
- In M-A Fouéré (Ed.): Remembering Julius Nyerere in Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es
- Salaam: Mkuki na Nyota: 33–61.
- —. 2015b. ‘Julius Nyerere’: The Man, the Word, and the Order of Discourse. In ed. M-A Fouéré
- (Ed.): Remembering Julius Nyerere in Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es Salaam: Mkuki
- na Nyota: 3–32.
- Goodwin, J. 1998. Forms of Authority and the Real Ad Verecundiam. Argumentation, 12: 267–80.
- Kwayu, A. 2015. Different ‘Uses of Nyerere’ in the Constitutional Review Debates: A
- Touchstone for Legitimacy in Tanzania. In M-A. Fouéré (Ed.): Remembering Julius Nyerere in
- Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es Salaam: Mkuki na Nyota: 127–40.
- Molony, T. 2015. Julius Kambarage Nyerere: His Formative Years. In M-A. Fouéré (Ed.):
- Remembering Julius Nyerere in Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es Salaam: Mkuki na
- Nyota: 65–71.
- Msagalla, B. 2020. Argumentation Involving Account-Giving and Self-Presentation in Tanzanian
- Parliamentary Debates: A Pragma-Dialectical Perspective. PhD Thesis. Stellenbosch
- University.
- —. 2022. Quotation and Misquotation in Tanzanian Parliamentary Debates. Journal of
- Linguistics and Language in Education, 16(2): 39–57.
- Nyerere, J. 1973. Freedom and Development/Uhuru Na Maendeleo: A Selection from Writings and
- Speeches, 1968–1973. Dar es Salaam and London: Oxford University Press.
- Reyes, A. 2011. Voice in Political Discourse: Castro, Chavez, Bush and Their Strategic Use of
- Language. London/New York: Continuum.
- Wagemans, J. 2011. The Assessment of Argumentation from Expert Opinion. Argumentation,
- : 329–39.
- Wierda, R. 2015. Experience-Based Authority Argumentation in Direct-to-Consumer Medical
- Advertisements: An Analytical and Experimental Study Concerning the Strategic
- Anticipation of Critical Questions. PhD Thesis. University of Amsterdam.
References
Antaki, C., & I. Leudar. 2001. Recruiting the Record: Using Opponents’ Exact Words in
Parliamentary Argumentation. Text, 21(4): 467–488.
Bjerk, P. 2017. Julius Nyerere. Athens: Ohio University Press.
Brennan, J. R. 2015. Julius Rex: Nyerere through the Eyes of His Critics, 1953–2013. In M-A.
Fouéré (Ed.): Remembering Julius Nyerere in Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es Salaam:
Mkuki na Nyota: 143–169.
Bunge la Tanzania. 2013. Kanuni za Kudumu Za Bunge. Dodoma: Bunge la Tanzania.
Constantinescu, M-V. 2012. The Use of Quotations in the Romanian Parliamentary Discourse.
In L. Ionescu-Ruxandoiu, M. Roibu, & M-V. Constantinescu (Eds.): Parliamentary Discourses
Across Cultures: Interdisciplinary Approaches. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars: 263–282.
Dibattista, D. 2004. Legitimising and Informative Discourse in the Kosovo Debates in the
British House of Commons and the Italian Chamber of Deputies. In P. Bayley (Ed.): Cross-
Cultural Perspectives on Parliamentary Discourse. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins:
–184.
Dickerson, P. 1997. ‘It’s Not Just Me Who’s Saying This ...’ The Deployment of Cited Others in
Televised Political Discourse. British Journal of Social Psychology, 36: 33–48.
van Eemeren, F. H. 2018. Argumentation Theory: A Pragma-Dialectical Perspective. Cham,
Switzerland: Springer.
van Eemeren, F. H., and T. Kruiger. 2015. Identifying Argumentation Schemes. In F. H. Van
Eemeren (Ed.): Reasonableness and Effectiveness in Argumentative Discourse: Fifty Contributions
to the Development of Pragma-Dialectics. Dordrecht: Springer: 703–712.
Fouéré, M-A. 2015a. Julius Nyerere, Ujamaa and Political Morality in Contemporary Tanzania.
In M-A Fouéré (Ed.): Remembering Julius Nyerere in Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es
Salaam: Mkuki na Nyota: 33–61.
—. 2015b. ‘Julius Nyerere’: The Man, the Word, and the Order of Discourse. In ed. M-A Fouéré
(Ed.): Remembering Julius Nyerere in Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es Salaam: Mkuki
na Nyota: 3–32.
Goodwin, J. 1998. Forms of Authority and the Real Ad Verecundiam. Argumentation, 12: 267–80.
Kwayu, A. 2015. Different ‘Uses of Nyerere’ in the Constitutional Review Debates: A
Touchstone for Legitimacy in Tanzania. In M-A. Fouéré (Ed.): Remembering Julius Nyerere in
Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es Salaam: Mkuki na Nyota: 127–40.
Molony, T. 2015. Julius Kambarage Nyerere: His Formative Years. In M-A. Fouéré (Ed.):
Remembering Julius Nyerere in Tanzania: History, Memory, Legacy. Dar es Salaam: Mkuki na
Nyota: 65–71.
Msagalla, B. 2020. Argumentation Involving Account-Giving and Self-Presentation in Tanzanian
Parliamentary Debates: A Pragma-Dialectical Perspective. PhD Thesis. Stellenbosch
University.
—. 2022. Quotation and Misquotation in Tanzanian Parliamentary Debates. Journal of
Linguistics and Language in Education, 16(2): 39–57.
Nyerere, J. 1973. Freedom and Development/Uhuru Na Maendeleo: A Selection from Writings and
Speeches, 1968–1973. Dar es Salaam and London: Oxford University Press.
Reyes, A. 2011. Voice in Political Discourse: Castro, Chavez, Bush and Their Strategic Use of
Language. London/New York: Continuum.
Wagemans, J. 2011. The Assessment of Argumentation from Expert Opinion. Argumentation,
: 329–39.
Wierda, R. 2015. Experience-Based Authority Argumentation in Direct-to-Consumer Medical
Advertisements: An Analytical and Experimental Study Concerning the Strategic
Anticipation of Critical Questions. PhD Thesis. University of Amsterdam.