IN 1984 there was a universal review of the dystopian novel Nineteen Eight- Four, sometimes written and published as 1984, written by George Orwell. More known for his satirical book Animal Farm, George Orwell is a pen name adopted by Eric Arthur Blair, an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist and critic. According to Wikipedia, “his work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to all totalitarianism, and support of democratic socialism.”
Published in 1949, after the Second World War, Nineteen Eighty-Four, as earlier observed, is a dystopian novel that warns against totalitarian governments that control every aspect of citizens’ lives. With terms such as “Big Brother”, “doublethink”, and “newspeak”, Orwell wrote the book as a cautionary tale after seeing what happened to people in Nazi Germany and fearing that totalitarianism could easily take over the US and Britain, enriching the English lexicon with the adjectival term “Orwellian,” for a political system in which the government tries to control every part of people’s lives.
It’s a sobering reality that in all the reviews, there was a convergence of opinions that governments, especially those of Western nations and the ones in the then Eastern Block, exemplified by that of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), have become pervasive, with eyes and ears everywhere, watching and listening to everyone as done to Winston Smith in the 1984 satire.
While the West’s “eye on us” may not be as overt as Orwell depicted, we are nonetheless an open book to them. We hide nothing from them because we cannot. This is true for using smartphones, smart televisions, tablets, laptops, desktops, Google, social media, and the internet.
Have you ever seen your movements captured by Google? As long as your phone is with you, google records and stores all your movements. It is the same with your phone calls. You may begin to see adverts on issues you discuss. If women discuss abortion, they would start seeing adverts on drugs and ways for it. Discuss money, and start seeing adverts from loan sharks.
Your phones can easily be used to trace you. And now, after seeing what the Israelites did to Hamas with pagers, you better know that your phone might not only be a spying device on you but an improvised explosive device (IED). A rigged bomb you are carrying about in your pocket.
In Gideon’s Spies: The Secret History of the Mossad, first published in 1999, Gordon Thomas, resulting from closed-door interviews with Mossad agents, informants, and spymasters as well as drawing from classified documents and top-secret sources, revealed previously untold truths about Mossad.
Mossad is the national intelligence agency of Israel, responsible for intelligence collection and covert operations, including the assassination of perceived enemies.
In the highly compelling and acclaimed book, he revealed that computers have spying chips embedded in them that Mossad accesses. Desktop computers, Laptops, printers, and similar devices are irreplaceable components in all workplaces. These office necessities are everywhere, including in homes.
From the highest office in the land to all sensitive departments, down to all security offices and those of all leaders across the executive, legislative, and judicial arms, you must find computers, laptops, smart TVs, and all those devices that we do not produce here but import from Western nations or Israel.
The Mossad used personal pagers to target members of Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, in a series of operations. This demonstrates the potential for technology to be used for surveillance and control.
Smart televisions, like the social media sites we visit through our phones, monitor and save our preferences and keep bringing up topics related to them to us.
Why do you think countries like China, Russia, Iran, North Korea and those fiercely independent do not allow Western internet providers or other satellites like Starlink to operate in their spheres? They do all they can to develop theirs. This is not just a local issue but a global one that affects us all. This could explain why America under Donald Trump never wants Huawei phones. Apart from the fact that it beats the American iPhone in terms of popularity, affordability and effectiveness, Trump knew what relegating the iPhone worldwide would do to his country’s ability to see many things.
This is not limited to the iPhone as all Android phones are in the same category and do the same function of monitoring their owner, just as all social media sites. Anything you write on Facebook is stored even if you delete it without sending it out.
These powerful entities use a cunning strategy to control their perceived enemies. They tie them to their apron strings, present them with the faces of “lovers,” and wrap them up economically and security-wise. An instance can be seen in how the Arab defence systems are systematically tied to the US. The Israeli security firm Kochav has provided billions of dollars worth of services in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, including surveillance systems.
Until we start indigenising our technology, we will remain open books to be accessed anytime through Google and satellites. The need for technological independence is not just a suggestion; it’s a call to action. It’s a path to reclaiming our power and control over our lives. Can you see the wisdom in educating our children in our languages as the Chinese, Turkish, Russians, North Koreans, and Iranians do? Can you see why these nations are racing ahead, developing and industrialising their nations with local materials and technology, using their people? The time to act is before we lose even more control over our privacy and independence.
We must develop the power to change this, build our technology, and protect our privacy.
Any country that will remain the recipient of foreign technology can never be independent, and neither can its leaders because the country and its leaders, nay, citizens, remain stark naked in front of those that do not desire to see them become united, strong, politically and economically independent. The consequences of inaction are dire, but the potential benefits of taking action, such as reclaiming our privacy and independence, are immense and within our reach.
However, the fight to emancipate the world would be not only interesting and full of chess-like manoeuvres but also hazardous, and it promises to be a fight to the death.
It is a consolation that the Russians, Chinese, and Persians are chess masters, but what of us in Africa?
- Dr Gimba, anipr, is the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Neptune Prime. His syndicated column, The Arbiter, appears on News Point Nigeria newspaper on Mondays.