Juba, South Sudan,
June 08, 2021 – Diamond Platnumz’s nomination to the Black Entertainment Television (BET) Awards faces a backlash after some Tanzanians filed a petition to block the bongo hit chanter from the contest over his support for late ‘dictatorial’ president John Pombe Magufuli.
The petition signed by over 20,000 people at the time of writing claims that Diamond is a renowned member of Tanzania’s ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi who directly used his fame and influence to endorse the leadership of Magufuli regardless of the human rights violation records filed against the president.
It says Diamond went mute in time his fellow artists fell prey to the ruling party’s brutal tactics.
“Diamond Platnumz has failed to show basic concern and publicly express any solidarity with his fellow artists like Roma Mkatoliki, Nay Wa Mitego, and Idris Sultan who suffered at the hand of the dictator Magufuli,” part of the petition partly read.
It claims that the Wasafi Records CEO also used his influence to cover up the brutal actions of Magufuli against Tanzanians.
“Diamond Platnumz chose to protect and expand his personal and business interest by praising and using his star power to soften the image of a brutal dictator and his collaborators,” it says.
“Diamond Platnumz is a selfish, greedy opportunist and an apologist of a repressive regime who chose to deliberately turn a blind eye to atrocities and associate, praise, and collaborates with renowned human rights violators like Paul Makonda and John Magufuli,” the petition added.
The petitioners urged BET to get down on a fact-finding mission and verify their information and consider blocking Diamond from the competition slated for June 28.
“We believe that once BET independently verifies these facts, it will be clear that Diamond Platnumz does NOT deserve ANY recognition in these prestigious awards.”
In a counter-petition seeking 5000 signatures, Diamond fans rubbished the above petition citing major developments the artist has made in Tanzania, including mentoring and funding young artists.
Diamond was nominated in the Best International Act category and will battle stars like Burna Boy, and Wizkid from Nigeria.
