SUPPORTERS of a candidate (named) in Tambul-Nebilyer electorate in Western Highlands Province stoned a vehicle belonging to the Minister for Labour and Industrial Relations and local MP Benjamin Poponawa.
Mr Poponawa’s Toyota LandCruiser 10-seater side glass was broken by supporters of a rival candidate in an attempt to disturb an event organised by the Kusumbu tribe at Pinta village in Tambul on Monday (22/05/17).
The event was organised by the leaders and the 3000 people of Kusumbu tribe from the two council wards contributing garden food, firewood, pigs, cash and kind to support Mr Poponawa and thank him for the services he had delivered for the past 10 years.
Mr Poponawa condemned the actions of the supporters of the rival candidate for disturbing the event that was organised by his supporters and damaging his car.
He urged candidates to control their supporters and respect other candidates and movement of the people in the electorate.
“I strongly condemned the incident that had occurred at Pinta Village and urged the candidates to respect one another and control their supporters from instigating trouble,” he said.
He said small trouble could lead to bigger problems and leaders and candidates in the electorate should take total control of their supporters and conduct their campaign in a peaceful manner.
“Try and build a friendly relationship to all people and candidates to earn people trust and vote. Right now, the people have the power to choose their leader and not us,” he said.
Meanwhile, commenters on social media at Tambul-Nebilyer Development Forum (Facebook) have condemned the actions of the supporters saying this is the lowest form of elections support and campaigning and must be condemned in the whole of Tambul-Nebilyer.
"You can't get into Parliament by resorting to such degrading forms of malicious behavior. Respect must prevail and all supporters must remain calm and conduct their campaigns in a more decent and civilized manner," an administrator of the Tambul-Nebilyer Development Forum, Solomon Wanis Tapura said.
"If you want to support in an extreme form, go to ela motors and buy cars for you candidate to campaign effectively or do something positive. Don't just pick up river stones or bush knives and resort to violence," Mr. Tapura said.
"You are not impressing anyone. You are only showcasing you low thinking capacity and do more damage to the candidates on both sides. This sort of behavior must stop in every household and tribal zones of Tambul-Nebilyer. We know Benjamin Poponawa might not have delivered but this is not how you show your disapproval. Everyone must campaign freely in Tambul-Nebilyer, including Poponawa," he said.
Many other commenters on the social media forum also condemn the actions of the supporters. Andrew Lapi on the forum said It is shameful to read about a candidate resorting to violence through his supporters to force the incumbent to surrender his leadership on a golden plate.
"Someone is so desperate to unseat the incumbent through violence. Is that the kind of leadership the instigator of that incident trying to portray?? What are your aims in alleviating law and order if get elected? How can you control the entire electorate when you cannot control your supporters?
Is that what you can do to uphold what we called free ,fair and safe elections?? The actions of this desperate candidate speaks volumes about his incapabilities of running the office of the Tambul Nebilyer people so better hang his head in shame and better quit or so!" Mr. Lapi said.
Source: Post Courier and Social Media (Facebook).
We all want a peaceful election in TN. Candidates including incumbent mp are our great leaders. Such actions from supporters are uncalled in the strongest terms possible as such actions would not only tarnish our candidates reputation but ma lead to failed election. Our candidates do not promote violence hence supporters must refrain from instigating violence. my advice to supporters: you can't unseat the incumbent MP through violence. It is through your vote that makes a greater difference.
ReplyDeleteSupporters inciting such incidents and chasing away possible voters.
ReplyDeleteBe mindful of your actions. Earn some respect for your leaders and respect them.
Elections nowadays are very expensive. Candidates are using their hard earned millions to contest so lets respect them. After all they are our leaders.
I totally agree with bata In-hawk's comment. �� Be mindful the supporters, are your actions beneficial? are you chasing away the voters? Lets ask this questions first.. Let's have a peaceful and war free election!
ReplyDeleteViolence and jealousy will lead us nowhere. It is always good to respect one another.
ReplyDeleteGuys we are all on one side including media I guess.Can anyone on ground briefly explain what actually happened?
ReplyDeleteI am not personally happy with this. It was a disrespect violent act shown to another candidate by a candidate and his supporters. It was a disrespect and violent act upon the current MP and his supporters. I condemn this candidate and his supporters. Not a good start for him.
ReplyDeleteTo the candidates generally, after going out campaigning, your warm-down activities at your campaign house should be to educating your supporters and coordinators on the importance of 3 preference voting system and the need to respect each other candidates and their supporters based on the free and fair slogan that you as a candidate should know well on that, and take ownership and be versed with.
The one (candidate) who does not know the importance of this process and does not take time to educating supporters and coordinators to respect other candidates, their supports and people's right etc would probably resort to other means, including inciting violence etc. That kind of candidate is incapable of making a good public leadership because he or she does not posses the basic requirement of the kind of leadership he or she is vying. That would be sad indeed.
Being a candidate is a choice you made yourself; it was not by force or coersed by other people upon you. You chose yourself at will to lead in all responsible forms and manners. Please conduct yourself responsibly and show to TN people that you are containing people around you and showing what you are capable of in a leadership you are vying for.
Any wise candidate alone would sit back and work out in such circumstances. That I mean is the common sense in the view that, for instance; when people around your vicinity giving out goods to another candidate, you should allow it to pass, sit back, see and hear what they have to say, and respect them. It may be that they want to give away goods only to assist the invited candidate in his or her campaign with an announcement that they have a candidate around their vicinity and would consider other choices with the goods but not the first choice; or some related announcements to that effect. You have to exercise leadership and courtesy and hear them out first.
The one who does not exercise such leadership with caution incites and creates unwanted situations and also slowly makes people to mount favor on other candidates. They therefore risk support and votes by their own conduct. Knowing that they have already risked favor and support of people due to/by their own behaviors, they then normally employ further unruly and evil plans to contain the disparity. It then costs peace and order in the community dearly. We can't afford that in our society.
Candidates, please do not let EGO rule over you in these remaining few weeks. Try to imitate Mahatma Ghandi, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King etc if you read about them. Just imitate them in your line of thinking in this brief period and exercise peace and goodwill to the society that is set before you. Its only a brief few weeks ahead. Let not the bad get hold of the best from you. Educate your supporters to prepare at all times to offer up their other cheek if the one is slapped, and let them know to return not with violence but smile.
I salute Hon Minister Benjamin Poponawa for exercising that leadership by educating his supporters to behave and remain silent even in time of violent act against them. Well done.
There is a general hatred feeling towards any PNC party candidates all over the country. This incident is just one of them - provoked by the hatred of PNC party. The sitting MP for Kundiwa-Gembol, Tobias Kulang's vehicle was stoned; vehicles were burned in Kerawagi and worst PNC strongman and Enga Governor Sir Peter Ipatas is not moving freely in Enga as he fears attack by opposing candidates and their supporters who hate PNC Party -...There could be many more damages elsewhere in PNG. Signs of PNC party losing is quite clear..
ReplyDeleteParkops vehicles stoned and billboards burnt to the ground around Port Moresby. Worse is yet to come.
ReplyDeleteExcept the unexpected.