According to Edward de Bono, most of the mistakes we make in thinking are inadequacies in perception rather than the mistakes of logic. The fact is that our perception of the world around us is flawed and incomplete and our memory is selective. We tend to filter what we see and hear to suit our own needs.
Much of this process is psychological and often unconscious. We are simply bombarded with too much stimuli every day to pay equal attention to anything, so we pick and choose according to our own needs. Our thoughts and attitudes are continually being shaped and moulded by the media and very few people question a story broadcast on radio or TV and published in the print media. Once a story or report is broadcast, it is disseminated in countless different versions of the original, like ripples in a pond until it becomes a perceived truth. A prime example of a perceived truth, and one that I believed until I researched this article, is that the PN has been in power for 20 years and the Ministers in the Cabinet have been there forever. The chart shows otherwise:
Of the original Cabinet formed in 1987, only Louis Galea (Minister 1987–1996 and 1998 to date) and Ninu Zammit (Parliamentary Secretary 1987–1996 and Minister 1998 to date) form part of today’s Cabinet. Francis Zammit Dimech was Parliamentary Secretary between 1990 and 1993, when he was appointed Minister up to 1996 and again from 1998 to date. Michael Frendo was Parliamentary Secretary between 1990 and 1992, Minister from 1992 to 1996 and Minister from 2004 to date. Censu Galea was Parliamentary Secretary from 1992 to 1994, Minister from 1994 to 1996 and Minister again from 1998 to date. Tonio Borg was Minister between 1994 and 1996 and Minister from 1998 to date. He was elected Deputy Prime Minister in 2004. Giovanna Debono and Louis Deguara were Parliamentary Secretaries between 1995 and 1996 and Ministers from 1998 to date. Austin Gatt was Parliamentary Secretary between 1998 and 1999 and Minister from 1999 to date. Lawrence Gonzi was appointed Minister in 1998, Minister and Deputy Prime Minister from 1999 and 2004, when he was elected Prime Minister. Carm Mifsud Bonnici was appointed Parliamentary Secretary from 2003 to date; Jesmond Mugliett and George Pullicino were Parliamentary Secretaries from 1998 to 2003 and Ministers from 2003 to date. Edwin Vassallo was Parliamentary Secretary from 1998/9 to date. Former members of the 1987 and subsequent PN Cabinets are: Guido de Marco, John Rizzo Naudi, Joe Fenech, George Hyzler, Anton Tabone, Joe Cassar, Pierre Muscat, Stanley Zammit, Manuel Bonnici, Michael Falzon, Lawrence Gatt, George Bonello du Puis, Ugo Mifsud Bonnici, George Hyzler Jr. Censu Tabone, Michael Refalo, Josef Bonnici and Joe Borg.
On the side of the MLP, there are Members of Parliament who have been in politics since the 1970s. Joe Brincat became an MP in 1971 and was a Minister under Dom Mintoff between 1979 and 1981.
Karmenu Vella became an MP in 1976 and served as Minister under Dom Mintoff, Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici and Alfred Sant. (Public Works 1981–1983, Employment 1983–1987, Tourism 1996–1998). Joe Debono Grech also became an MP in 1976 and served as Minister under Mintoff, Mifsud Bonnici and Sant. Leo Brincat entered Parliament in 1981. He was Parliamentary Secretary responsible for Housing under Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici and Minister for Finance and Industry under Alfred Sant between 1996 and 1998. Marie Louise Coleiro was the MLP’s general secretary in the 1980s. George Vella was a Member of Parliament from the late 1970s to 1987 and was returned from 1992 onwards, serving as Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Environment in Alfred Sant’s Cabinet and as Deputy Prime Minister. Apart from the above, Joe Mizzi, Helena Dalli, Charles Mangion, Charles Buhagiar, Gavin Gulia, Evarist Bartolo, Noel Farrugia, Michael Farrugia, and Anton Refalo were members of Alfred Sant’s Cabinet between 1996 and 1998. Some of these people have been Members of Parliament for over 30 years!
It makes you think doesn’t it? A section of the media maliciously starts a spin that suggests that the members of the current Cabinet – the people whom we elected to take the decisions that would improve our standard of living – are past their sell by date. It becomes what is known as conventional wisdom, i.e. wisdom that gains mass acceptance and which is usually contrived.
In this particular case there has been deliberate misrepresentation of facts. A little deceit goes a long way. All it takes is repetition. Lay the groundwork and people will buy anything. After that, just ride it out until they seem doubtful again, then sell it to them again or go on to the next spin.
There is no truth. There is only perception (Gustave Flaubert)