DESPERATE TIMES CALLS FOR DESPERATE MEASURES
By Kramer Report
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Following the issue of a warrant of arrest for the former Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, I note a re-emergence of fake news being published on social and even mainstream media in an effort to tarnish the good work of Marape-Steven Government.
For instance warrant of arrest was made public on 15th October 2019.
On 23 October, Post Courier reporter Isaac Nicolas published a biased and misleading article under the headline “Abel Urges Marape to Embrace O’Neill’s Good Policies”.
The article goes on to praise the achievements of the previous Prime Minister. Abel purportedly made these statements during the launching of Tambul-Nebliyer District Plan in the company of the Prime Minister James Marape.
When I read the article I thought it was unusual for Abel, who is now a senior Minister under the Marape-Steven Government to be foolish enough to be praising Peter O’Neill and lecturing our Prime Minister to follow his purported good policies- policies that have caused our economy to flat line, rendered broke and neck deep in debt.
I asked a fellow Minister colleague who attended the event to confirm if the report was correct, he explained the article was misleading and taken out of context.
The day before, the same reporter emailed me asking for my comments in relation to an article sent to him branding Marape’s 5 months in office as marked with outright complacency and indecisiveness with everything falling part. The article goes onto attacking my role as the Minster implying among the other things falling apart is the deteriorating law and order around the country, which he claims is a result of constant change in leadership in the Royal Police Constabulary.
The author of the article goes on to state:
“When pressured to make the high profile arrests on allegations he had been preaching- UBS among others- Kramer has nothing to show as he has no solid evidence because he was lying all along. A clumsy and ham-fisted arrest attempt on former PM Peter O’Neill few days ago was easily foiled and consequently egged his political opponent to sought smarter defensive strategies.”
It forced me to ask the question why a senior political reporter with a premier newspaper contacting Minister’s of State asking for a comment in relation to a highly opinionated, politically charged nonsensical article from an unknown author. Have our reporters lost their professionalism and are now resorting to digging for stories in the gutter?
Yesterday, the same paper published highly defamatory caption in the drum claiming Waigani and Canberra are in a spin, over what to do with an affair between senior PNG Minister in the security sector and married Australian diplomat. Claiming PNG’s security issues may be comprised and expectation of high morals of elected office are being trashed.
Soon after the publication individuals hiding behind fake FB accounts published baseless allegations on Pro-O’Neill Facebook pages naming myself as the Minister involved.
My Response:
People hiding behind fake accounts on social media publishing false and misleading articles is nothing new to me, nor is incompetent bias reporting by our mainstream media.
In fact I expect it to ramp up in the coming months as Marape-Steven Government shifts into second gear in the fight against corruption including holding the former Prime Minister and his cronies answerable to the rule of law for their alleged part in misusing and mismanaging billions in public funds.
Let’s just say it is the calm before the storm of things to come.
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