By: Miro Petek
In Slovenian public discourse, it is still quite blasphemous to say or write that someone is lying. Even during my years as a journalist, we were persuaded that lie is a very harsh word and that we should rather use the term wordplay when someone is not telling the truth, as if this would convey the same message to the audience. But of course, this is not true – such verbal nuances, where a lie is not labelled as a lie, only serve to prevent the rejection of obvious falsehoods.
The four faces of Slovenian politics (Golob, Vrečko, Klakočar Zupančič, Sukič), now staring at us from billboards across Slovenia, are, of course, lying – making them liars. The verifiability of this statement is omnipresent. Looking at their images, but especially at their actions, raises many questions, the central one being: Why do they lie? And why do some politicians, over the course of their political careers, develop into pathological liars? Perhaps they entered politics as honest and sincere individuals but were transformed into liars by the political environment. Or maybe the inclination to lie was already within them before they crossed the threshold of government and parliament, and once there, they simply honed their deception to perfection. Longer psychological studies of these political figures would be necessary to answer the question of what led them to the point of becoming captives of their own lies.
So why do these politicians – and many others in the political sphere – lie so frequently? Simply because we, as a society, allow them to. They have realised that lying brings them more benefits than harm. The Slovenian public has become completely numb, and the media, which should be holding them accountable, are intellectually weak, lazy, or cheaply bought and bribed. Before elections, we tend to be lenient, accepting even the most blatantly obvious lies as mere campaign promises. However, during their time in power, the public should be monitoring whether these promises are being fulfilled. Yet, very few people ask what has become of the commitments that earned a political group the mandate to govern. Instead, the ruling elite replaces unfulfilled promises with constant lying, which the public continues to uncritically absorb. Effective lying acts as a lubricant for corrupt politicians, as repeated falsehoods gradually become socially acceptable and normalised. The public adopts lies as truth. And the biggest problem? Voters no longer punish this behaviour. Since lies never disappear from public discourse, they eventually become reality for many.
It took considerable time and effort to expose the blatant lie by Golob and Sukič regarding pensions, as the dominant media shamefully remained silent for far too long – even though the falsehood was obvious from the start. The lie was eventually proven beyond doubt, yet the so-called fact-checking journalists conveniently disappeared. By buying off the media and securing journalists’ favour, the current government has imposed a decree: questioning their actions is not allowed. They are the saviours; they are the best.
Even more than lying, they excel in dishonest communication – misleading, ambiguity, insinuations, and verbal deception, where they deliberately omit or obscure certain facts. And this is just as morally reprehensible as outright lying. Let’s not forget: “We abolished voluntary health insurance…”
The standard of honesty should be emphasised more. But again, the problem lies with us. When tycoons were stealing in plain sight and law enforcement and the judiciary failed to act, many simply resigned themselves, saying: “They just found a way. I would too if I were in their position.” There was neither moral nor legal condemnation of the crime. And now we are paying the price, as lying has also become acceptable. Politicians will continue to lie as long as it is profitable – until the benefits outweigh the risks.
Would Pehta’s magic drops be enough to wake the Slovenian people from their slumber?
