The Latin phrase translates as 鈥渕ake haste slowly鈥 and appears at first glance to be a contradiction in terms or an oxymoron. A truer translation is 鈥渂alance speed with caution鈥, a warning that rash decisions can have long-term detrimental consequences.
Down the centuries, the maxim was adopted by many leaders, and it featured in the works of painters and writers who helped sustain it in history. The aphorism has now been very definitely adopted by many seasoned Irish politicians in their hyper-cautious approach to the upcoming presidential election campaign in October.
A widely-admitted belief that President Michael D Higgins will be a very hard act to follow is compounded by very bad experiences during personalised campaigns in the two previous elections of 2011 and 2018. Thus far, the pre-campaign has been characterised more by people ruling themselves out than by promulgating their candidature.
At this point, just two people 鈥 the mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor and Donegal-based businessman Peter Casey 鈥 have made clearly positive noises about standing (Mr Casey surprised many by coming second last time out with a remarkable 23pc of the total poll).
The wisdom of prioritising caution over speed is hard to argue with
One assumes that, behind the scenes, the more seasoned and mainstream politicians and their party organisers are giving the election considerable thought. Surely some quiet preparations are being planned.
Fine Gael appears best fixed for a prompt campaign take-off later this summer. Two strong candidates 鈥 former GAA president and MEP Se谩n Kelly and former EU commissioner Mairead McGuinness 鈥 are quietly cited by the party.
Fine Gael has never won the office since it was created in 1937. Either potential candidate would be a strong contender for addressing that lack.
The identity of a Fianna F谩il potential runner is less clear, though former ministers 脡amon 脫 C煤iv and Mary Hanafin have not ruled themselves out. Party soundings also suggest that adopting an external candidate, as FF did when it endorsed Mary McAleese in 1997, remains a possibility.
Sinn F茅in has to decide whether to throw its lot in with a common candidate backed by left-leaning parties or go it alone as it did to very mixed results in 2011 and 2018. The prospect of a united leftist candidate cannot be ruled out, and it will be recalled that this did succeed admirably in 1990 when president Mary Robinson upset the apparently heavier hitters.
On balance, the wisdom of prioritising caution over speed is hard to argue with. The nasty 2011 campaign effectively ran from the May holiday weekend to Halloween, with longevity creating many practical problems.
But to Caesar Augustus鈥檚 aphorism there is a counter, which reminds us that 鈥渉e or she who hesitates is lost鈥. In politics, timing is crucial.