Council
28 November, 2024
Dyson calls out dodgy misinformation tactic
INDEPENDENT candidate for Wannon Alex Dyson has called out an ongoing scare tactic hitting letterboxes across the region, which he says is wasted energy and resources which could be helping others.
INDEPENDENT candidate for Wannon Alex Dyson has called out an ongoing scare tactic hitting letterboxes across the region, which he says is wasted energy and resources which could be helping others.
Another flyer, which Mr Dyson feels is designed to scare south west Victorians against voting independent at the next federal election, is landing in letterboxes across the Wannon electorate.
The flyer makes false claims and features a deep fake image of Mr Dyson.
It follows a similar flyer sent out by the Liberal Party in September.
Mr Dyson said he viewed the scare tactics as a sign the community independent campaign is on the right track.
“We have almost 1000 volunteers running a positive campaign with honesty and integrity,” he said.
“But it does say a lot about the state of politics in general.
“Random people in Canberra have done a dodgy photoshop job putting my face onto someone else’s body on a flyer and spent thousands mailing it across south west Victoria.
“Imagine if that energy and money had gone into fighting for better roads or healthcare for the south west?”
Mr Dyson said the Australian population was “tired of this sort of politics” which set a bad example for the next generation of leaders.
“This is the level of discourse Australian politics has sunk to,” he said.
“Why would a young person who cares deeply about their community get into politics and try to make a difference if this is the type of behaviour they’re likely to face from major parties?
“The people of Wannon deserve better.
“We are focused on getting a better deal for Wannon and making decisions in the best interests of our communities.”
Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) director of media and digital engagement Evan Ekin-Smyth said it was critical voters think about the content they’re consuming and the source of that content.
He said the digitally altered flyer was similar to signs lobby group Advance circulated of Independent candidates Zali Steggall and David Pocock in the lead-up to the 2022 Federal Election.
“In 2022, the AEC’s view was that this signage breached section 329 (of the Electoral Act) when displayed during the polling period,” he said.
“At that point, an elector could have been misled as to which party the candidate represented when casting their vote.”
For more information about Mr Dyson’s campaign, visit www.AlexDysonIndependent.com.
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