Adrian Delia has declared that the party he now leads shall be the home of Catholics and Latins – “the true Maltese”. Many Catholics, to whom Latin comes naturally, have responded with fervour: “Ora pro nobis!” But what about those others whose grasp of Latin is limited to one or two phrases, like quo vadis and persona non grata?

Let me speak plainly: De gustibus non est disputandum. If some people don’t like a quote from a party anthem, that’s fine. But others have gone further.

They say that Delia has taken a verse and managed to turn its meaning upside down. In its original context it indicated a cosmopolitan nationalism. He turned it into little-Malta jingoism.

Lies, all lies. Delia has been much maligned and misunderstood. Latin still stands for a universal culture. And if only we, in the media, were properly informed, and not cut off from our cultural roots, some regrettable cultural misunderstandings could have been avoided.

Take the fuss about Delia describing the simple pleasures of true Maltese. He was misreported as saying the Maltese like nothing better than walking down to the village square for a chat, tinkering with their cars or seeing to their birds.

Some familiarity with Latin culture would have instantly shown what he meant. A walk down to the forum to discuss the fate of the Republic. Attending to the all-important chariot. (Do we really need a historian to tell us that the most influential driving instructor in our glorious national history is still Ben Hur?)

And the birds? How else, in these troubled times, are the auguries to be read and electoral strategies plotted?

With a little more cultural humility, we could have been spared some injustice. The biased media portrayed as abject all the former PN parliamentary candidates who declared, on Facebook, that they would be ready to kill off their parliamentary prospects to make way for their Caesar to take up his seat in Parliament.

And yet, how much changes if you think of them as valiant gladiators, facing their emperor, and declaring: “We who are about to die, salute you!”  In death, their fulfillment. I’ll bet my last toga that, now, Delia’s familiar thumbs up seems all the more magnanimous. Imperious but so in tune with the vox populi.

With the right historical perspective, all can be seen afresh. Delia serving coffee at a PN club? Panem et circenses, of course. Historically, some emperors (like Caligula, for example) were extremely popular for that sort of thing.

And take that needless class-based mockery for having, as his constant shadow, that faithful servant, Vincent Borg, fondly known as Ċensu l-Iswed. Was the glory of Rome not also based on the toughness of its praetorian bodyguard? And is that still not relevant in our day, when all that stands between PN Central and Joseph Muscat, Glenn Bedingfield and Luke Dalli – that modern-day Hannibal and his elephants – is the traffic?

Other misunderstandings have been linguistic. If the media had more Latinists, we could have avoided the ruckus about Jean-Pierre Debono, the PN’s assistant secretary-general caught signing proxy forms without permission.

“Fraud” is a crude Anglo-Saxon oversimplification masking an attack on Delia. What really took place could have been described more limpidly thus:

“Debono did not issue a mea culpa because, although he was caught in flagrante delicto issuing proxy forms in absentia, his ad hoc modus operandi was a straightforward instance of a bona fide deus ex machina, and all it takes is a simple question – cui bono? – to see it was the summum bonum, i.e., Adrian Delia, and ergo, ipso facto, the party.”

Journalists will find that a little Latin will go a long way in the age of Delia

A priori this might sound a non-sequitur but ex post facto it makes perfect sense. Do you hear anyone complain except the losers, who in complaining show they have still not understood the need to be in touch with voters? Quod erat demonstrandum.

Debono is a wronged man. He deserves Delia’s praise and the media’s recognition of his heroism. Can Latin help us the media pay tribute to this true Maltese?

Unfortunately, “dulcis in fundo” is not real Latin. We are stuck with “lupus in fabula”. But we can certainly avoid referring to him as “ex-MP”.  I suggest “MP emeritus”.

Journalists will find that a little Latin will go a long way in the age of Delia. You can write about the status quo, how people are missing terra firma and think they are heading for terra incognita.

You will need to brush up. Be prepared to hear Delia say, “E pluribus, unum” (out of many, one). In your reports learn to distinguish between whether he said it ad infinitum or merely ad nauseam. Refresh “quid pro quo”, just in case you’re offered one.

Some journalists might be disheartened at all the Latin they need to learn. Don’t be. There is plenty of Latin you can keep in cold storage.

Let’s be practical. Delia is unlikely to invoke “ductus exemplo” – leadership by example – so don’t bother memorising it. On the eve of the general election, our Caesar might say, “Alea iacta est”, ergo Google it. But since it’s unlikely he’ll ever say, “Veni, vidi, vici,” don’t.

For extraordinary help with shortcuts, I strongly recommend the erudite two volumes – Latin for All Occasions, and Latin for Even More Occasions – by the admirable Henry Beard. Here, interviewers will find how to ask Delia where’s the beef: “Ubi est bubula?”

But they will probably also need “tempus fugit” at their fingertips, in case he tries to waffle his way out of that one.

While holding Delia to account, though, beware of malicious information. Stories about business links to porn billing sites are fake news. Ignore any video which features pro-Establishment, non-Catholic, Anglo-Saxon dialogue such as, “Oh! More! Go on!”

Of course, an arcadian “O! Plus! Perge!” (thanks, Mr Beard) would warrant further assiduous scrutiny of the evidence. But keep in mind it could simply be a poetic expression, in the language of the people, of revolutionary fervour for the New Way. We cinephiles all know that sex is the simple man’s opera.

The New Way is a new dawn for Maltese journalism. We must keep up with it. Rumour has it that the construction lobby is seriously considering changing its name to SPQR (Society for the Prevention of Qruelty to Real-estate) – and if you think that mangles the language, just look at what they’ve done to the landscape.

There’s more. A leaked draft of quips and jibes for Joseph Muscat to use in his first parliamentary encounter with Delia has “Wake up and smell the coffee!” crossed out and replaced with: “Expergiscere et coffeam olface!”

Muscat always knows which way the wind is blowing.

ranierfsadni@europe.com