Earth Rights Institute - Towards a New Political, Social and Economic Structure for Africa

[French Version]

Towards a New Political, Social and Economic Structure for Africa

by Sunny Akuopha, African Center for Land and Taxation Policy

Africa's problems are enormous as we all know, and I summarize them into chapters of hopelessness, first the ancient times, the times of ignorance but with a civilization, as Jomo Kenyatta testified to in his book "Facing the Mount Kenya" and in his memoires of his famous Journey, discovering the sea route to India; Vasco Da Gamma, wrote that he met a civilization in every African land that he passed through. The people lived on land and gave back happily a portion of their produce from land to all those that led them in conviviality. Unknown diseases killed our people, and the blood of citizens oiled the saber of kings.

Secondly it was colonial times where rhythms that we could not dance to, were played for our people, from whence settled these False Republics, the good the bad and the ugly came out from this era.

Thirdly came the independence fathers, that ushered in rhythms that were all a cacophony, leaving no ideological order that could sustain a political, social and economic development, they took over the villas of the colonial masters and operated constitutions that were doctored by the departing colonial masters.

Fourth came the khaki boys, who just wasted every aspect of our public life, using the arms bought by the peoples money to maraud this same people, and held public conscience hostage for over two decades. By the way, what is the justification of today's military or defense expenditure in Africa? Who are they arming themselves to fight against? Nobody, their own people and their own treasury. The fifth chapter is of course, our present era, where after forty years of independence we are talking about democracy.

So what does this mean? That we had independence without liberty? This is a stark contradiction! There are so many questions that can be asked, like how did we get independence without a democratic culture? All we have witnessed is the quest for POWER, those who hold public office, thus hold power, and not a post being held on trust on behalf of a people, so then, who is this power for, and who is this power against?

I also assert that since there is No Land Freedom, there can be No Democracy, and of course No Government of the People of Africa.

How can we close these chapters of hopelessness in Africa? It is simple, let us simply and carefully consider these reasoning:

Every Nation is a people who have one culture, one language and live on one land, the coming together of this people on one land space implies ab initio, a social contract on how this people shall make a living on this land. The first essence of government therefore is, how to govern the usage of this land for the common benefit of all. This leads therefore to the fundamental notions of civilization, how a people shall agree to live together.
The beginning of an egalitarian society without fraud, is that which the consciousness of land has been inculcated in the minds of it's people, in knowing what part to use, and what to give to the community for it's use, a government that is originated from this concept is transparent and can never be corrupt, never.
Real republics shall emerge in Africa once they return back to Land, because it is common to see today that just as land is held in monopoly and speculated and gained by a few, that is how Africa's governments are monopolized and gained by a few. People go vote and do not know who or why they vote.
How do African's justify their payment of taxes? No one can say, because a classical definition of taxation in Africa " is a pecuniary value that is taken by an authoritative way, without immediate obligation in view of taking care of public expenses." Since there is no immediate obligation implies that, it is binding for the citizens to pay and it is not binding on the authorities to do anything corresponding to the value they have taken, now or in the future.

That is why we must all work together to realize a Land Government as a veritable model of government for the nations of Africa.

What shall a Land Government give to Africans?

It shall bring to them the fundamental essence of government and democracy that they have never known.
It shall bring about decentralization and an easy and participatory government in a real communal life style and not "a government run by the few and for the few " in this status quo Mafia styled governments.
It shall bring about transparency in public revenue collection and applications, "reducing corruption to zero", corruption that has eaten deep into the African public life like a canker worm.
It shall bring about learning and innovation for positive changes that can usher in a real social contract for the development of a stable political, social and economic order . The installation of a land government shall bring equitable government, ending ethnic conflicts. Ethnic conflicts are caused mostly by a struggle for the control of natural resources of which land is egregious.
With a Land Government that derives it's revenue from Land Value Taxation, one strong thing shall also happen: The Liberty of Enterprise, where the person as an individual plays this role fully without any hindrances that taxes do in our present day economy, in fact, a free market economy can successfully take place in real terms, when land government begins in Africa.
Land government will bring a conscious commitment and dedication on the part of every individual, because of the dividend yield to them and the community or nation as a whole.
Land Government shall abolish the "Rob the People Governments" that reign today in Africa.

Where else do governments embezzle loans procured for the purpose of essential services for her own people?.

Let us now take the case of The Peoples Republic of Alodia, an imaginary nation used as a teaching construct by the Henry George Institute, and consider how its policies contrast to our modern day nation of Mali.

Alodia:

No import duties
Basic minimum wage is targeted at $500 permitting the consumption of essentials for a dignified existence.
Free trade and investment
Public revenue is derived from Land value taxation
No stories of corruption
Government is open and participatory
They have unilaterally revoked the payments of foreign debts
The west is afraid and tries to sabotage it for it shall obviously revise the present situation of the "The Poor man suffers, the Baboon works and the Monkey eats"
Ministries are created according to public need and utility.
Public revenue are collected and allocated from the local to state to national level

Mali:

Import duties for over 5000 goods including essential machinery and equipment that range from 40% to 56%, industrial development has never been heard of, how can?
Basic minimum wage is about $20 per month tied to a sack of rice and a kilo of beef meat
No free trade and investment, regulations abound
Public revenue is derived from assorted taxes and duties that their usefulness to the payer are unknown.
Corruption is rife, former government functionaries who have never done private business before spend millions of US Dollars to finance their own campaigns.
Government is not open and participatory, but it is as you see it and are told
They still service debts and heavily saddled with foreign debts whom no one can justify the purpose of their procurement.
The West taps them on the back and calls Mali " a good student of the Bretton Woods"
Ministries may be created to satisfy allies and pacify the opposition
Public revenue are allocated from the national level to state to local level.

Of these two countries, Alodia and Mali, where would you sincerely love to invest your money?

Land government shall bring us back to the fundamental essence of living, the community life of "who ever has raw meat, must look for who has a fire, and they shall all feed on the meat."

According to Henry George, in his much celebrated book " Progress and Poverty", he asserts that, in comparing society to a boat "her progress through the water will not depend upon the exertion of the crew, but upon the exertion devoted to propelling her. This will be lessened by any expenditure of force required for bailing, or any expenditure of force in fighting among themselves, or in pulling in different directions.

Now, as in a separate state the whole powers of man are required to maintain existence, and mental power is set free for higher uses only by the association of men in communities, which permits the division of labor and the economies which come with the cooperation of increased numbers, association is the first essential of progress. Improvement becomes possible as men come together in peaceful association, and the wider and closer the association (the wider the understanding in communication and operation), the greater the possibilities of improvement. And as the wasteful expenditure of mental power in conflict becomes greater or less as a moral law which accords to each an equality of rights is ignored or is recognized, equality( or justice) is second essential of progress. Thus association in equality is the law of progress."

There are several quotations from Henry George, which time shall not permit me to quote, but I want to use this occasion to invite all present and those that shall read this little discussion to edify themselves with the reading of the book "Progress and Poverty" by Henry George.

Now, how shall a land government begin?

It shall begin like a velvet revolution ( Bloodless), with the present and future African leaders, seizing this initiative, calling and holding national conferences and deciding through a political referendum of the people of the existing republics, to sincerely evaluate the states and justify their well being or existence in them.

They shall then opt for new nations according to their ethnic, religious or regional affinity in a peaceful manner. Federal unions may later on according to the solemn will of the people emerge in the true spirit of a commonwealth solidarity union.

Mutual respect of all future components of such federal unions shall automatically take place instead of the false sense of nationhood's that we have at this moment that encourages nothing but hypocrisy, sabotage and endless vain struggles for national unity that is eternally elusive.

This new dispensation shall end recurrent ethnic crisis, civil wars, and stagnating national plans that cannot be fully executed for want of national unity.

A true political, social and economic prosperity shall be the new dawn of Africa. As ecologists, I want to say that the progress of Africa depends on you and to exploit ceaselessly the principles of Henry George in your noble calling and struggles and to make it cathechismic in your minds and endeavors that the quest for public office should not be that for power, but the assurance of public trust, therefore African Ecologists and others elsewhere must work ceaselessly in gaining public trust and confidence, so that their election to public office should be a sign of this trust and confidence.

I want to hail the organizers of this seminar and urge all, to from today, help to encourage the spread and the teaching of Georgist principles and "land value taxation" as a part of civics to school children and workers, because without learning we cannot understand, and if we do not understand, we cannot act.

Thank You!

NEXT: The Challenges of Democracy and Natural Resource Management for Sustainable Development by Gordon Abiama

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