Voting season in Norway is approaching its climax. The Norwegian prime minister Jens Stoltenberg chose an original approach to talking to people about politics. He drove a taxi incognito in Oslo wearing a taxi driver’s uniform and sunglasses. He revealed himself only when recognised. Mostly amused reactions of passengers can be seen in a video captured through a hidden camera.
In a video posted on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube Stoltenberg said: "It's important for me to hear what people really think. If there's one place where people say what they think, it's in the taxi."
According to the BBC, the footage, made in collaboration with an advertising company, has been posted on the prime minister's Facebook page and made into a film which will be used as part of his campaign for re-election in September. The campaigning is in full swing for the 9 September general election, which Stoltenberg's ruling leftist coalition appears likely to lose, according to the latest opinion polls.
A hidden camera fitted in the cab recorded reactions from the passengers, including one who remarked: "From this angle, he really looks like the prime minister." An elderly woman who also recognised the politician urged him to do something about "the salaries of bosses", complaining that "they should not make millions like that", reported the Sky News.
First driving in eight years
Beyond revelations from the clients, Stoltenberg himself had one to give away, admitting to a passenger who recognised him that he had not driven in eight years. Asked by tabloid Verdens Gang if he would like to be a taxi driver if he lost the elections, he said: "I think that the country and Norwegian taxi passengers are better served if I were a prime minister and not a taxi driver." According to the newspaper, the passengers did not have to pay for their journeys.