Boris Johnson, Cronyism, sleaze and corrupution.

In 2007/8 I was subjected to a 6 month smear campaign by the London Evening Standard led by 'investigative journalist' Andrew Gilligan and the then Standard editor Veronica Wadley.  They accused me of 'misappropriating' £3.3 million pounds, of forcing GLA officers to fund 'my mates' organisations and for enforcing a culture of ' cronyism and sleaze'. Both were offered paid positions by Boris Johnson and continue to work for the Mayor.

Cronyism and corruption were the charges they gave me.

The standard over that time had made 143 separate speculative allegations and my name and that of my family were harangued and dragged through the mud. In addition 30 black organisations and 17 individuals were also accused

The then editor of the Sunday Times Patience Wheatcroft was drafted into to chair a Forensic Audit Panel to look into all the allegations. DeLoittes Forensic Legal Accountancy team was brought into poor over every penny of spending and all associated processes. The matter was referred to the Metropolitan Police and The Audit Commission, Companies House and the Greater London Assembly all conducted spirit investigation over the course of two and half years.

£1 millon investigation took nearly three years.

The Mayors investigation cost a £1m and took two years 6 months to complete. It took until July 2010 before all these investigations were completed. In that time all of us lived with the cloud of suspicion hanging over our heads. It was the most appealing time and lost of those accused became seriously ill as a consequence.

Result: No case to answer. 

These investigations all concluded without exception that there was no case to answer. Of 30 block organisations smeared not one was found to be guilty of single misdemeanour, not so much of a postage stamp out of place.

Of the 17 individuals accused alongside me, not a single person was charged or cautioned for any offence. I must be the most investigated black man in the UK almost every aspect of my private and professional and political life has been crawled over or looked into by press, police or politicians. The investigation was all encompassing, forensic in nature and emotionally exacting.

Lives and reputations destroyed. 

The reputations of friend and colleagues, in addition to my own, were brutally traduced. Many were left unemployable and struggling financially, some developed depression. . Many have never, ever recovered from this poisonous election campaign of 2008.

The legacy lives with all of this affected today and of course some people continue to believe what they read way back then. For me I have come to rationalise is it an horrendous experience, but as nothing to the suffering endured by Black activists through the ages.

Sure it was a 'modern high tech media lynching' and deeply traumatic for all concerned, but I was exonerated and we are still alive, that counts as plus. Once Boris had beaten Ken Livingstone by 60k votes the subsequent decimation of cuts to black organisation across the capital was what followed, in a brutal culling of London's black voluntary sector.

This was followed by Local Authorities and the the Tory Government who continued to slash funding to black groups.

 I said at the time, this was not an attack on me, but an attack on the whole black community' I was laughed at by some. Suffice to say they're not laughing now.

All this for an supposed £3.2 million pound 'misappropriation' that never was nor was there any substantive evidence for from the outset.

Boris and £1 billion land deal.

Now consider the news item below from Channel 4  reporter @MichealLCrick who raises significant questions about ABP Chinese developers  £1 billion pound purchase of the Royal Albert Dock, London.

Apparently ABP were this least experienced bidding company, in  terms of completing major capital projects and the largest firm, in terms of Tory party donations.

The issues raised in this piece are hugely important and pose serious and critical questions about the nature of Boris's seemingly suspect relationship with ABP. Huge donations to the Tory Party and major land acquisition in London.

There appears to be an unhealthy  synergistic and symbiotic, potentially corrupt relationship between the Mayors onward investment agency London Partners and ABP

There seems to the stench of corruption floating around this whole deal, yet I can guarantee you, that although the sums of money dwarf the amounts involved with me, I doubt whether Boris will be subjected to anything like the same level of scrutiny, neither will he be subjected to an ongoing relentless campaign by broad section of the British press.

Well done Channel 4 News and the Guardian for picking this story up.

Its a rough, cruel and unjust world we live in. More so if you're black, more so if you're poor. The rich and the powerful play games and destroy lives, whilst ensuring the really big money stays with them.

I hope the Greater London Assembly initiates an immediate independent investigation as should the Parliamentary Home Affairs Committee and the Public Accounts Committee.  The Metropolitan Police Should investigate any possible corruption and the BBC and right wing press should press for answers each and every day until the General election.

Will that happen? I somehow doubt it. Now if Boris was a black man....

02 Store Retail Racism. Store Phone's Police for Young Black Man Businessman

London is one of the most diverse cities in the world. With a long history of settled black communities you would expect that our city would be at ease with itself with such a long standing history of multicultralism.   

But scratch the surface of these glib statements and another reality becomes all too apparent. Young black people face a routine and unacceptable level of discrimination within the City of London retail shopping and business areas, in employment within London's financial services sector.

Here is a tale on twitter of one such young man's experience as he tried to simply upgrade his phone in the London 02 store, Cheapside.

I have summarised a lengthy number of tweets from  @Eddie_Fiasco as he described his experience of  02 retail racism;

At  3.23  Eddie exited Canon Street Station and walked into 02 store. A young black business owner, he wanted to upgrade his phone to the iphone 6.

He was advised by the  02 sales assistant on what was required and told he would need a bank statement. So Eddie enquired as to where the nearest Barclays Bank was and set off to get a statement. 

He then printed off all the necessary information and headed back to 02. 

When arrived he presented the documentation, but was surprised to be told he then needed to provide more credentials,such as company letterhead, in order to prove he owned their business.

Eddie promptly called his office and had a business letter head sent to over to him.

The store then started to process the application and he sat paitently waiting.

Ubeknowns to them them store manager had secretly called the police, suspecting that Eddie was a fraudster.

To Eddie’s shock and horror, two City of London Police Officers entered the and began to question these young businessmen. Satisfied they were legitimate, they left. 

The store manager then had the termerity to tell Eddie, that he had called the police as a precautionary measure, before he had even checked the authenticity of their credentials!

After waiting between 2/3 hours they were refused a contract despite providing all the necessary paperwork.

Eddie, now outraged asked for an apology and was refused.

Having suffered this disgraceful racism he left the store. 

As he left they suffered on more humiliation, they were offered a ‘chocolate bar’ by 02 by way of reparation.

This is what racial profiling looks like. The police were called for Eddie because he was a young black man. 

The police were called with no objective evidence of criminality, they were called prior to the 02 store manager having checked their credentials.

Such is the racism young black people face everyday in the City Of London and as an eager, young business man,  Eddie suffered this total humiliation all because of the attitude and prejudice of the store manager.

Here's is a young black businessmen, striving for success, being treated as if he were nothing more than a common criminal.

Do  02 have a policy for calling the police when black people walk in their stores? 

Do they monitior the ethnicity of their customers and the service they receive? 

How many complaint of racist treatment have 02 had from black customers?

Whilst London remains the pre-eminent diversity capital of the 21^st Century, the City of London retail and financial services sector, remains a strong bastion of white privilege and naked race discrimination. 

We remain economically excluded from the City. Its time we took matters into our own hands and ended retail racism and broke down the doors of employment discrimination in the City.

I suggest we complain to both 02 and Ofcom, the phone regulator and ensure they get the message that such behavior is entirely unacceptable.

02 Customer Service

0800 977 7337

Ofcom

Riverside House

2a Southwark Bridge Road

London SE1 9HA

Switchboard: 020 7981 3000

Complaints: 020 7981 3040

(9am-5pm Monday to Friday),

Textphone: 020 7981 3043 or

0300 123 2024

Louise Mensch and Lee Jasper? What's the connection

If Tory Louise Mensch and I agree on something this going to be news.

We both agree that former UKIP member Jasna Badzak has been badly treated.

We both agree that there appears to be a grave injustice.

We both agree that something must be done. Surprised? You can read more here

Jasna Badzack, UKIP critic arrested after UKIP Gerrard Batten MEP complains to Met Police.

Gerrard Batten MEP 

Many of you will have read with alarm the story of former UKIP Press Officer Jasna Badzack and her campaign to expose UKIP potential fraud, racism and possible links with sympathetic Metropolitan Police Officers.  You can read more on the background of this amazing story here. Recently this bizarre tale, took yet another dramatic turn.

So infuriated was Gerard Batten MEP with the contents of the article and the tweets form Jasna and I that followed, he complained to the Metropolitan Police of  feeling 'threatened, harassed and intimidated'.

The compliant from Batten, was that Jasna comments in the article above, an article that I wrote bear in mind, was causing him alarm and distress.

Despite suffering from a serious heart condition Jasna was summoned on the 4th November to an interview, under caution at Paddington Green Police station by Detective Sargent Christopher Page.

Yet there has been no police compliant or legal challenge to the accuracy of the piece from either UKIP or the Metropolitan Police.

In another terrible twist in this deeply worrying tale Jasna has been charged with 'harassment'.

Jasna Badzak 

The stress of this constant police attention has lead to serious deterioration of Jasna heart condition. I believe Battens hope is that through constant pressure he can force Jasna to remain silent. He is seemingly assisted in this endeavour, by a Metropolitan Police Service . Batten appears to have a hot line to Scotland Yard that allows him to have Jasna arrested on request.

Any complaints about Jasna political comments, should a civil not a criminal matter. Why are the Met so insistent in involving themselves as agents of Battens political campaign? How is it, that the Crown Prosecution Service has agreed that Jasna is guilty of harassment for calling UKIP fascists, accusing them of potentially committing serious EU expenses fraud, an accusation subsequently repeated by mainstream press.

I find her latest arrest, both alarming and deeply ironic.  Notwithstanding the very serious complaints and accusations Jasna makes in my original article that suggest a corrupt network of UKIP supporters in the Met Police,  possibly the Crown Prosecution Service, the fact that Batten is trying to silence her voice through criminal as opposed to civil law, is revealing.

For UKIP,  the libertarian leaning party of 'free speech' to seek to actively criminalise its critics, reveals the real political character of this 'party of the people'

I conclude that whilst Batten can't challenge the facts of the article, he is confident that he can get the Met to prosecute a case, he can't prosecute in the civil courts.

The serious complaints and questions articulated in my original piece remain unanswered.

It seems to me that Jasna is being subjected to a relentless and on going camping of police harassment.

What is clear, is that Batten and UKIP, don't want the information in this article to reach a wider audience. I

In supporting Jasna, I ask that you ensure the original article and this update ,get circulated far and wide.

Jasna will fight this case despite her failing ill health. The question I ask is why,  Greater London Authority Assembly Members or the Mayor himself have not asked serious questions in relation to these matters?

You can support Jasna by sharing this article. offering to join our small campaign team. In addition you could help by volunteering to help arrange a public meeting on these issues.

Both Jasna and I are willing to speak at any public meetings on these issues, please help us get this message out.

#Justice4Jasna 

NB Support @JasnaBadzak facing political persecution as she attends court on 26th Nov 9.30am West London Magistrates Tollgarth Road, Hammersmith. London.