The Sky For
p. 33 · Read in the full issue
There's Pie In
Some Electors
There are peculiar political platforms being offered by some of the 299 candidates for the elections, and the platforms of some others have achieved curious reactions.
Among the suggestions are that: Money can be grown on trees; there will be cars for all after the elections (natives in one area have been building garages to hold them); all the whites will soon leave P-NG (and some Papuans as a result are preparing to flee their villages to avoid inter-tribal massacres they expect will follow ); everybody in the Terri tory will become immediately rich after the elections. A New Britain report that one candidate suggested black skins would be turned white by injection could not be confirmed, despite official inquiries.
There have been a number of electioneering vote-catching devices, particularly among European candidates. Mr.
“Junior” Buchanan, of Goroka, has been dropping thousands of leaflets from his own aircraft, and Major Don Barrett, of Rabaul, has been using a native piper on the bagpipes to attract attention at his meetings.