Political reality: Of truisms and urban myths
urban myth? Is it a truism that Namah is 'Mr Fixit' whereas O'Neill is 'Mr I'll look into it'? No, it's an urban myth - Writes Susan Merrell An idea has emerged in the PNG social media that Prime Minister Peter O'Neill is a man of empty words while the Opposition Leader, Belden Namah, is a man of action. These perceptions are incorrect, especially as they apply to politics. A public relations machine, paid and unpaid, has been particularly active on behalf of the opposition leader pushing this idea in the social media pages. When something is repeated often enough the gullible tend to accept the veracity of the claim and thus an urban myth is born. It's an interesting strategy, however, when using any form of media, the opposition leader needs to consider his image, not only amongst his diehard social media followers, who tend to be young, brash, impulsive and arrogant (and male), but also amongst those who would be his peers. Namah's late