In a startling revelation by a piece done by Jim Waterson and Harry Davies in the news website The Guardian, it is revealed that a lobbying firm having Tory-links helped a mining company swing elections in the Democratic republic of Congo (DRC). According to The Guardian, the lobbying group named CT Group which is co-owned by the veteran strategist of the Tory party, Lynton Crosby, agreed to help a mining company swing elections in the DRC. The CT Group in exchange for millions of pounds from the Canadian mining firm First Quantum Minerals worked on the 2011 campaign against the DRC government. Mark Fullbrook was also allegedly involved in the anti government campaign in the DRC. He was PM’s Chief of Staff until last week. He was the closest aide to the former PM Liz Truss.
CT Group: A strategic campaigning group
The website https://ctgroup.com/ suggests the group has its own intelligence network which it uses to meet certain targets for its clients.
To help clients with problems, the CT Group offers a variety of investigative services, extensive due diligence, and hard-to-access intelligence. It uses unique investigations software, a global network of sector and regional sources, and psychological profile of significant opponents to understand their motivations and anticipate future behavior. Additionally, it offers personal security services to customers all around the world. Regarding campaigns for its client, the group’s considerable campaign delivery expertise helps it combine several communication channels into a single coordinated campaign that is focused on fulfilling the goals of its clients. Its website suggests that the group is not restricted by certain models but rather makes sure all pertinent channels are running simultaneously, leading to the rollout of an impactful and persuasive campaign to the targeted audience, especially through digital techniques.
In order to detect the various reputational threats from online sources, media, indirect social media networks, deepweb directories, and cybersecurity, it designs a strong digital reputation campaign strategy based on a diagnosis of the client’s digital presence.
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CT Group’s DRC campaign
First Quantum promised to pay CT Group up to £1.2 million in fees for a seven-month project, with an additional £1 million bonus if specific goals were attained. A CT Group representative confirmed that the company has “sponsored campaigns in a range of nations,” including the DRC, but refuted claims that its activities there were hidden or anti-democratic.
However, the group’s approach raises concerns about the morality of political consultants trying to influence an election on behalf of a business vying for significant mining rights in a developing nation like DRC. The ill-intentions of this group tells us that it knows, that it can create instability or propagate false news to achieve certain targets and it will go unpunished as the West thinks itself as the default masters of the third-world countries. According to documents, CT Group, formerly CTF Partners, informed First Quantum in May 2011 that the upcoming elections in the DRC offered “a real potential to influence the future of the country.” CTF said it would give “direct assistance to the most potential candidate to beat the incumbent president” and engage in “indirect activity” to devalue the government in order to “achieve the most favourable outcome” and “add value” to the mining firm.
Another element of CTF’s strategy called for targeting the nation’s then-president Joseph Kabila in order to “create an atmosphere of opinion” that would favour First Quantum in its legal battle with the DRC government.
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CT Group’s “Open Zambia” campaign
In the neighbouring country of Zambia, where First Quantum is the largest copper mining and largest foreign investor, CTF was engaged in another covert political effort three years after the DRC campaign. According to The Guardian, CTF in Zambia, assisted in the 2015 special election victory of business-friendly opposition candidate Hakainde Hichilema. Despite performing better than anticipated, Hichilema was not elected president of Zambia last year despite outperforming expectations. The website “Open Zambia” is still adding articles. It touts its function in “promoting transparency” and identifies itself as “Zambia’s only independent news source.” The website, which frequently features stories in support of First Quantum, makes no mention of the fact that a lobbying firm from London founded it.
The aforementioned information tells us that even a small mining firm and a lobbying firm in the West are entitled to create instability and topple governments “indirectly” in order to meet certain goals. The West crying democracy in each and every circumstance and global forum doesn’t recognise the undermining of democracy by its private or public institutions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d67aF18d9nY&t=2s