When Under The Sway Of Groupthink

I tried to understand why this MP and a Minister in our current GoPNG would come out like this on the impending strike tomorrow. It would have been better to keep quiet about this then to open his mouth and confirm to the rest of the country and the world of persons of unsound mind we have in our parliament. As a human, he is expected to leverage off what we all are endowed with: self-awareness, imagination, conscience and an independent will, to give a sensible response that is reflective to the plight of especially health and education in our country. But instead he reacted with an insensitive, backward and mocking statement urging us to "think about our sick patients in hospitals and health facilities [and] our learning institutions". Obviously we can't manage these two sectors well with the wealth inherent in our country and here our GoPNG gives justification to be extravagant. "We are a great nation blessed with abundant resources. We need to give our best [to hosting the APEC]...[we can't afford] to provide cheap cars for world leaders".

In seeking to understand, I think back to this topic on 'Groupthink' from 'Moral Issues In Business, 12th Edition, pg 20' by William Shaw and Vincent Barry.

"Almost all groups require some conformity from their members, but in extreme cases the demand for conformity can lead to what social psychologists called 'groupthink'. This happens when pressure for unanimity within a highly cohesive group overwhelms its members' desire or ability to appraise the situation realistically and consider alternative course of action [like avoiding responding on this planned strike]. The desire for the comfort and confidence that comes from mutual agreement and approval leads members of the group to close their eyes to negative information, to ignore warnings that the group may be mistaken, and to discount outside ideas that contradict the thinking or decisions of the group.

When under the sway of groupthink, group members may have the illusion that the group is invulnerable or that because the group is good or right, whatever it does is permissible. Individuals in the group tend to self-sensor thoughts that go against the group's ideas and rationalise away conflicting evidence, and the group as a whole may implicitly or explicitly pressure potential dissenters to conform. Groupthink thus leads to irrational, sometimes disastrous decisions, and it has enormous potential for doing moral damage."

Hope this explains in some ways why people in a group setting behave the way they do.

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OPPOSITION'S PLANNED PROTEST 'CHILDISH', SAYS NININGI

Loop PNG - Wednesday, October 24, 2018 15:55

By Loop Author

Press Release

The Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology Minister is asking Opposition Members to not misuse their constitutional mandates given them by the people and Government of PNG.

The Minister and Imbonggu MP, Pila Niningi, said: “The Members of the Opposition have an obligation to provide a check and balance to every government decisions but it has to be done on the floor of Parliament, not homes and streets.

“The nationwide stop-work protest planned by the Members of the Opposition can be seen as an irresponsible action.

“This is childish. It’s like a barking dog without teeth.”

Minister Niningi, in affirming the Government’s commitment in delivering the APEC meeting, said PNG is not a banana republic state to provide cheap cars for world leaders.

“We are a great nation blessed with abundant resources. We need to give the best.”

Niningi said the vehicles were bought through ‘duty-free arrangement’ and will be reselling to recoup the funds.

“Our business houses, members of the community and even the Opposition Member of Parliament can afford it if they wish.”

Niningi said the approach of nationwide stop-work is a lazy man’s approach.

“The Opposition should not take the irresponsible approach. Let’s think about our sick patients in hospitals and health facilities, our learning institutions, our industrial worker who will be missing some of their hours for their wages.

“There are risks involved and the outcome will be less significant to the APEC itself.”

Meantime, the proposed boycott on Friday, October 26th, aims to organise the Opposition as well as members of the public to stand united and say ‘enough’ to corruption.

“The Maserati deal is just one scandal after another. And we’re asking, when will it stop?” Opposition and Madang MP Bryan Kramer had earlier said.

Kramer pointed out the Paraka case, where the case against the Prime Minister was closed, including the Manumanu land deal, where police cleared the implicated Cabinet Ministers of all allegations against them.

“Scandals where millions of Kina have been misused or stolen and yet, not a single arrest has taken place,” stated the MP.

“We are now fed up, we no longer believe in the system. The only thing we believe in now is the people.”

He further said: “If you don’t believe the Opposition, go ask the employers on how difficult it is now to do business in PNG.

“It’s only a matter of time before they lose their jobs and then they’ll have a very desperate life because they no longer can provide for their family. So there’s no point in your kids going to school if there’s no job when they get out.”

Kramer also pointed out the ever-failing health system, teachers’ payment issues and high-cost of living, among others.

Kramer said after the stop-work, the Opposition would reveal their next move.