“We live in a time of monsters. And increasingly in the Western political system, these monsters take human political form.”
Source: CGTN
The U.S. has hosted a second “Summit for Democracy” after publishing an annual report on the human rights records of countries around the world, except that of the U.S. itself. What is the relationship between democracy and human rights? How should we re-examine democracies in the West? Guest in this edition of Dialogue is George Galloway, leader of the Workers Party of Britain and former member of the UK Parliament.
What really happened to Nigeria Billion dollar steel company
Russia designed, financed and constructed Ajaokuta in the 1970s to serve as the Nigerian and West African steel manufacturing hub. The project was repeatedly politically saboutaged. Today, Nigerians want the Russia to come back and get the plant up and running at full capacity.
The way things played out for the Nigerian steel industry are exactly how they played out for DR Congo. The Western oligarchy have stopped industrialization at any cost. Please read my article on the Congolese Steel Plant : Maluku Steel: the Time is Now. The article is also in French: La Siderurgie de Maluku. [Type in on search bar]
Excellent paper on the subject of steel industry : The Steel Industry: a Stimulus to National Development
What really happened to Nigeria Billion dollar steel company
Source: David Nkwa
5 November 2021
In today’s video, we take a trip to Ajaokuta a community in Kogi State, Nigeria to find out the true state of Ajaokuta Steel Company. What really happened to this billion-dollar steel factory that should have changed the fortune of Nigeria. Let’s find out (Black) In 1973, Iron Ore of required quality was discovered in Itakpe in Kogi State Nigeria, subsequently The National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO) was founded in 1979 along with Ajaokuta Steel Company. The mission of NIOMCO was to explore iron ore in various parts of the country, process and supply the iron ore concentrates to the Ajaokuta Steel Company, from where steel and liquid still are produced. So essentially NIOMCO will be doing the mining of iron ore, while Ajaokuta Steel will be doing the processing of iron ore to steel. To construct the Ajaokuta steel complex, in 1979 Under a Cooperation agreement between Nigeria and the then Soviet Union The construction of the Ajaokuta Steel Company started. The construction was expected to be completed in 7 years, that is from 1979 to 1986. Different companies were involved in the construction of different components of the project, however a Russian firm called Technoproexport in short (TPE) were the main architect and project managers of the project. Unfortunately, President Shagari government which started the project in 1979 was overthrown in 1983 in a coup and another government took over and the project was never completed in 1986 as planned Walkthough talk….
15 years later in 1994, the Russian firm completed the project to 98% and needed Nigeria government to meet up with its 2% contractual obligations, Unfonately, that never happened, so the company abandoned the project and left Nigeria in 1994.
The company then demanded for $2.5bn compensation for the work they have put into establishing Ajaokuta steel, after long negotiation, it was agreed that they be paid $500m with the plans that they will be re-invited to complete the works. Also as at the time the Russian Firm TPE left Nigeria, they did not handover the detail Master Plan to the Nigerian government, because they were still expecting to be invited to complete the work However instead of recalling the original builders of the factory for completion, in 2004 the Nigerian govt now led by President Obasanjo leased the project to Solgas Energy, an American firm. Shortly after leasing Ajaokuta steel to the solgas, sighting non-performance, the contract was revoked and given to an Indian company called Global Steel Holdings. Unfonately the Indian company Global Steel, did nothing significant in getting the place to work either
So in 2007 After President Musa Yaradua took over from Obasanjo, he terminate the concession given to Global Steel accusing the Indian company of asset stripping and faulting the agreement to be largely skewed in favor of the Indians. The president also ordered that the Indian company be investigated for corruption and assent stripping.
Well as you know, president yaradua government did not last that long, and the investigation he ordered to be conducted nerve happened. Well, the Indian company however sue Nigeria govt claiming they spent $500 million on the project
Interview With Lawrence Freeman: Strategic Importance of Africa For The World
March 10, 2023
In this interview, I explain the strategic importance of the African continent for the global economy in this century. I advocate for a complete reversal of U.S. policy or Africa. It is past time for the U.S. to stop complaining about China and correct our own foreign-economic policy toward the nations of Africa. What African nations need most is: long term, low interest loans for the financing of vital infrastructure projects. China and other nations are contributing to this type of development; the U.S. is not.
Both France 24 and RFI, which cover African affairs and broadcast news in former French colonies in Africa, referred to as Françafrique, have been also suspended in Mali.
Burkina Faso expels reporters from French newspapers
France unwanted in Burkina Faso
Foreign reporters working for France’s ‘Le Monde’ and ‘Libération’ dailies have been expelled from Burkina Faso as part of measures the west African country has taken against French media.
French newspaper Le Monde reported the expulsion on Sunday, saying Burkina had told French correspondents to leave.
“Our correspondent in Burkina Faso, Sophie Douce, has been expelled from the country… at the same time as her colleague from Libération, Agnes Faivre,” Le Monde announced, condemning the move as “arbitrary” and “unacceptable”.
“Libération” also said it “vigorously protests these absolutely unjustified expulsions” and suggested they were linked to an investigation it published earlier in the week.
“The March 27 publication of a Libération investigation into the circumstances in which a video was filmed showing children and adolescents being executed in a military barracks by at least one soldier evidently strongly displeased the junta in power in Burkina Faso,” the paper said.
The Burkina government spokesman said after the piece was published that “the government strongly condemns these manipulations disguised as journalism to tarnish the image of the country”.
The two reporters arrived in Paris early on Sunday after being expelled late on Saturday, Le Monde added.
Also on Monday, Burkina’s ruling junta suspended all broadcasts by the France 24 news channel, after it interviewed the head of Al-Qaeda North Africa.
In December, the Burkina junta suspended Radio France Internationale (RFI), which belongs to the same France Medias Monde group as France 24, accusing the radio station of airing a “message of intimidation” attributed to a “terrorist chief”.
Burkina Faso, which scrapped a 1961 agreement on military assistance with France only weeks after it told the French ambassador and troops to quit the country, is battling extremist militants.
