The Watch-Men Agency @dricketts

I debated long and hard whether to do this publicly, but I think a message needs to be sent to a group of external interests working in tandem with the internal interests described in the quoted tweet to counteract the interests of half a billion West Africans. A message that at whatever level we exist, we take our destiny seriously and we are not to be trifled with. Last week, I received an N800,000 offer from an international NGO called Dialogue Earth (formerly known as China Dialogue Trust) to write an article essentially saying that Dangote Refinery is terrible for the environment because something something "Environmental Concerns," something something "Climate Change," something something "Energy Transition Policy," something something "COP 28." The (unstated but clearly implied) thrust of the brief was for a prominent local voice to put their name on an article that is an argument or a premise for the the Nigerian government to kill the refinery based on its "energy transition commitments" and "environmental policy." This conclusion wasn't immediately apparent when they reached out to me, but I suspected where it was heading, and I quickly accepted the offer so that I could see the brief and obtain hard evidence. I've attached screenshots from the brief below. Basically, this London-based NGO is headed by Sam Geall, an Oxford professor and is funded by several American intelligence fronts such as Ford Foundation and ClimateWorks (which is blacklisted in India for funding organisations working against India's national interest). For whatever reason, it is now quietly mobilising a resistance campaign against what it describes as "Nigeria's first refinery." Apparently, the status quo of Africa's largest oil producer having no functioning oil refinery to beneficiate its own oil was not a problem for Dialogue Earth and the American CIA fronts who fund it. The human poverty caused by exporting this raw material and importing refined fuel was not bad for the environment. Also, the fact of European refiners regularly blending West African fuel cargoes with toxic waste and sulphur content 200 times the European legal limit (leading to asthma, bronchitis and eye infections in West Africa) was also not bad for the environment. But Nigeria having a refinery that will wean West Africa off import dependency on those European refiners (and allow West Africa control the sulphur content of its own fuels) is where Dialogue Earth and its funders draw the line. That one is bad for the environment, and David Hundeyin should write an article calling for the refinery to be shut down or limited. I'm putting this out there publicly so that nobody will henceforth use the term "conspiracy theory" when it is pointed out for the umpteenth time, that there are American and European state and private interests that are heavily invested in keeping Africa exactly as poor as it is, and that they regularly push levers most of us do not even know exist, to make sure that this status quo is protected. These people believe that Africans should not exist or have nice things in this world. Apparently, the sole purpose of our existence is to enhance their experience of the planet and all that it has to offer. It is because of them that I have to make a public spectacle out of this, even though I know that doing this is probably going to cost someone their job. The message needs to be passed that as poor as we are, you cannot convince us to campaign for the elongation of our own poverty by commissioning $500 hack jobs in the hope that we will be greedy enough to only see the money and ignore the bigger picture of what we can clearly see you trying to do. I will reiterate something I have said multiple times - I am not a believer in the religious faith called Climate Change/Saving The Environment. I care exactly as much about the environment as do the rich white men who destroyed it to begin with. I firmly believe that if what it takes for Africa to industrialise is for it to burn so much fossil fuel that snow stops falling in Wisconsin and it starts raining concentrated sulphuric acid in Doncaster, it is not too big a price for Europe and North America to pay - it is certainly not bigger than the price Africa had to pay for Europe and North America to develop. It is and will continue to be 100% OUR prerogative to determine what to do with our hydrocarbons. It is not the rich white men hiding behind these "Climate Advocacy NGOs" who will tell us what to do with our energy reserves, and by what means we are allowed to escape the poverty that they engineered for us. I might not be a fan of Aliko Dangote or his monopolistic business practices - as is well known - but I'm also smart enough to know when rich white men in DC, Houston, Rotterdam and London and trying to use me as a marionette in their 400 year-old coloniser games. If you are reading this and you are one of the rich white men whose economic interests are threatened by Nigeria refining its own oil, you should come out and fight Aliko Dangote by yourself. Or at least go find a much stupider African to do your dirty job - there's plenty of those. It will never be me.

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Dangote Group @DangoteGroup

2 years ago

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Don’t you want to believe it?/Don’t you want to lift my shirt and see/the huge beating genius machine/that thinks, no, it knows/it’s going to come in first ▶️#NowYouSeeUs Women Artists in Britain 1520-1920🎟️#TateBritain @Tate💻Revw theguardian.com/artanddesign/a…ℹ️tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-…

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Have you heard about the pathology crisis in South London? A private company Synnovis won the contract to run pathology for Guys, Thomas's and Kings Trust They suffered a cyberattack and the whole system has frozen! There appears to be no proper effective business continuity plan or backup, cybersecurity etc - risking the safety and health of patients taking a backseat to dividends!!

"I was hooked from the start, and invested in both the events and characters throughout. The writing style was gorgeous, and so vivid. I would recommend this book to anyone." - Librarian Reviewer Congratulations to @ChukwuebukaIbe4 on this beautiful novel. #AdventureWriting

Here’s the thing… There are so many filmmakers from where I’m from that are coming up. @RealRapman has Supacell about to storm the planet. But when you’re from where we are from, everything is unnecessarily harder. You face so many walls…

EARTH MAMA, our first release as distributors, won the Outstanding Debut @BAFTA last night! Savanah, Medb, Shirley- massive congratulations to you! Thanks to our team, the cinemas + organisations who supported EARTH MAMA and everyone who saw this film at the cinema ❤️ #EEBAFTAs

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We just hit submit on a bid to #ArtsCouncilEngland centred on #FreedomOfSpeech and #FreedomOfExpression Life sure has a sense of humour! Wish us luck. 🤞🏾✊🏾🤎 @corinne_fowler @WordsofColour

Truly devastating. He literally had the world at his feet, and now gone in the blink of an eye. Sometimes life really does tear up the script. #kiptum #kenya #marathon

AW @AthleticsWeekly

3 years ago

We're sad to report that world marathon record-holder Kelvin Kiptum and his coach have lost their lives in a road accident in Kenya. Kiptum was 24 years old and ran his world record of 2:00:35 at last year's Chicago Marathon.

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🌸🪭Discover the art of Chinese Fan Dance with dancer Hangyu (Joanna) Zhou in this months Mix & Move session presented in collaboration with @southbankcentre 📅 Fri, 2nd Feb, 12-2 pm 📍 Clore Ballroom, Southbank Centre 🆓 eventbrite.com/e/mix-move-x-m… #AVeryBritishRyhthm

GB “News” presenter tweets that a Black man should “f*** off back to Jamaica”, and returns to work like nothing happened. This is the bastardisation of British journalism and media. And the re-normalisation of racism. Shocked the former head of Sky News condemned the ad boycott.

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I know you've got bills to pay @linmeitalks but I'm surprised you're drinking the new racial science kool-aid. There's so much evidence of racism in mental health that it's not even a debate. Happy to send you a free copy of the #PsychosisOfWhiteness to get you started

Been working on this one for a while and honestly so excited to be getting the @CymandeOfficial official story out there. The story is incredible and the film tells it so well. Make a note to see in a cinema early next year! @CymandeMovie @jwoodfilm @JuliePearce @BFI

Screen International @Screendaily

3 years ago

Music documentary ‘Getting It Back: The Story Of Cymande’ drums up UK-Ireland theatrical deal with @BFI (exclusive) t.ly/Qth_I

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Patrice Lumumba Last Letter. He was the first legally elected prime minister of D.R Congo and was assassinated in 1961 following a military coup supported by U.S.A & Belgian imperialism which was admitted by the State Dept in 2013. My dear wife, I am writing these words to you, not knowing whether they will ever reach you, or whether I shall be alive when you read them. Throughout my struggle for the independence of our country I have never doubted the victory of our sacred cause, to which I and my comrades have dedicated all our lives. But the only thing which we wanted for our country is the right to a worthy life, to dignity without pretence, to independence without restrictions. This was never the desire of the Belgian colonialists and their Western allies, who received, direct or indirect, open or concealed, support from some highly placed officials of the United Nations, the body upon which we placed all our hope when we appealed to it for help. They seduced some of our compatriots, bought others and did everything to distort the truth and smear our independence. What I can say is this—alive or dead, free or in jail—it is not a question of me personally. The main thing is the Congo, our unhappy people, whose independence is being trampled upon. That is why they have shut us away in prison and why they keep us far away from the people. But my faith remains indestructible. I know and feel deep in my heart that sooner or later my people will rid themselves of their internal and external enemies, that they will rise up as one in order to say 'No' to colonialism, to brazen, dying colonialism, in order to win their dignity in a clean land. We are not alone. Africa, Asia, the free peoples and the peoples fighting for their freedom in all corners of the world will always be side by side with the millions of Congolese who will not give up the struggle while there is even one colonialist or colonialist mercenary in our country. To my sons, whom I am leaving and whom, perhaps, I shall not see again, I want to say that the future of the Congo is splendid and that I expect from them, as from every Congolese, the fulfilment of the sacred task of restoring our independence and our sovereignty. Without dignity there is no freedom, without justice there is no dignity and without independence there are no free men. Cruelty, insults and torture can never force me to ask for mercy, because I prefer to die with head high, with indestructible faith and profound belief in the destiny of our country than to live in humility and renounce the principles which are sacred to me. The day will come when history will speak. But it will not be the history which will be taught in Brussels, Paris, Washington or the United Nations. It will be the history which will be taught in the countries which have won freedom from colonialism and its puppets. Africa will write its own history and in both north and south it will be a history of glory and dignity. Do not weep for me. I know that my tormented country will be able to defend its freedom and its independence. Long live the Congo! Long live Africa! Thysville prison Patrice LUMUMBA

This is a superb film. Efira is excellent in her portrayal of trauma, grief and unreliable nature of memory. Winocour is one of the most talented and exciting voices in cinema IMHO.

BFI @BFI

3 years ago

'Cemented by Virginie Efira’s restrained, empathetic performance, Paris Memories is a deft exploration of recovery.' Little White Lies Alice Winocour’s new drama opens this Friday at BFI Southbank.

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The biggest buzz in fashion circles has been building around the Womens World Cup Jamaica kit, designed by British-Jamaican Grace Wales Bonner in collaboration with Adidas. Allegedly highly prized by the most fashionable football fans. 👏🇯🇲❤️🇯🇲

Honored to be named a 2024 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Jazz Master. I am humbled and honored to walk in the footsteps of Art Blakey, Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis, Wayne Shorter, and other Jazz Masters. Thank you @NEAarts for recognizing my work.

This is happening.

Get lost in #FrankBowling’s color-soaked abstract compositions on view at @SFMOMA 🔗 Plan your visit to ‘Frank Bowling: The New York Years 1966–1975 ’ bit.ly/439FMYv Also on display at our West Hollywood gallery 🌴 ‘Frank Bowling. Landscape’ 📅 Through 5 August

Good night x

Join me from 10am on @jazzfm where my guest is the talented @OfficialMeshell plus a feat'd track from trumpet don @IfeOgunjobi and new business from @BalimayaProject straight after the brilliant @niavee app/online/smartspeaker