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As Nigeria&#8217;s President Muhammadu Buhari prepares for a meeting with President Trump on Monday the 30th of April. Muda Yusuf, Director General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce joins CNBC Africa to discuss what should be on the agenda.

Buhari to meet Trump: This is what they will discuss

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US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has begun his first diplomatic trip to Africa. Before he took off on Tuesday, he delivered a speech where he stressed that the focus of his visit would be counter-terrorism.

U.S.  pledges to help Africa fight terrorism

Karingana wa Karingana founder on scaling up the textile industry

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Forbes Woman Africa bagged an award for best single issue and also bagged an award for best feature, a feature about refugees in South Africa written by Rofhiwa Madzena. She joins CNBC Africa along with Renuka Methil, Editor, Forbes Woman Africa.

Forbes Woman Africa wins international awards

Publius Cornelius Tacitus, who lived during the first century AD, gave this warning: “The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws”. It was an equation – of an unusual kind – based upon no mathematical or scientific model, it was based on an observation of social behaviour; what later academic studies have described as behavioural science, a science known for its inexactitude. Tacitus’ wisdom has, however, withstood the test of the millennia.
Like Lord Acton’s aphorism about the insidiously corrosive effects upon the human psyche of an intoxication with power, Tacitus’ observation is based upon certain immutable and timeless human characteristics. Both observations are universally verifiable, irrespective of the era or the place.
In the United States there is a bi-annual migration of sorts; a migration of lobbyists, numbering several thousand from around the country, who descend upon the nation’s capital, each obeying an emphatic command to do the bidding of the corporate imperative.
Because money is the advantage that is sought by all, and because exemptions from the federal tax regime represents a singular advantage that can be measured by the measure that counts, these lobbyists are singularly responsible for the most intricate, the most incomprehensible tax code ever devised.
The Federal Tax Code comprises no fewer than 75,000 pages when last counted, in 2014. The uncompleted task, which relied as much upon calculation as on actual counting, was then abandoned and has not since been resurrected. Many of these pages deal with the special interests pleaded for by the lobbyists, which are stipulated in innumerable exemptions; provided only that there had been a bribe sufficiently attractive to seduce the requisite number of lawmakers. 
How can this possibly be better than a vastly simplified flat rate of taxation with no exemptions and no special interests? It is a system that has been proven, in practice, to raise even more revenue than the present graduated method, which does not properly serve either the purpose of revenue collection, or of equity; the latter being the principal reason that is constantly advanced for the stubborn endurance of a failed system.
In the United States the billionaires: the multi-national corporations, the moguls of the financial system and the speculators of Wall Street, all of whom have access to their Capitol Hill influence-peddlers, pay less tax, as a percentage of income, than the average working man – some pay no tax at all. Where is the equity in that? The simplified system will moreover largely eliminate the employment of the lobbyists, and with it, the opportunity for large scale corruption.
What Tacitus foresaw, and what the passage of time has proven, is that corrupt people armed with political power will willingly trade privilege in exchange for reward. What Lord Acton understood when he proclaimed, centuries later, that power tends to corrupt, and that absolute power corrupts absolutely, is that the corrupt are drawn towards power. From this collective wisdom may be derived a most salutary lesson: those armed with the power to make laws should be restrained to make only those that pass the test of necessity. These would be only those laws that advance a legitimate common interest and do not needlessly impede individual liberty.
It has been said that there is good law. This idea profoundly misconceives the nature of law: it is a restraint upon individual liberty. Some restraints are necessary; the liberal philosophers, John Locke and John Stuart Mill understood this necessity, but much of it is unnecessary and even pernicious.
There is no good law; there is only necessary law, which is the law that serves a social utility. And then there is the law that undermines, distorts, enervates and destroys the stuff of human endeavour and with it, as in the extreme cases of Soviet Russia and North Korea, the human spirit. The essential feature of this law, is corruption. 
Statutory law does not emerge from wisdom, compassion or goodwill; it is the product of a temporary authority. Thomas Hobbs, another liberal philosopher, expressed the matter in this way: “It is not wisdom but authority that makes a law.” 
If, when the ANC had come to power, they had set about to expunge the statute book of all the laws that offended against individual liberty; if they had set an objective of increasing the freedom of the individual instead of increasing the burden of restitution; if they had made only necessary laws, South Africa would likely have become, within 22 years, an educated, prosperous and harmonious society. Instead, while largely ignoring the pernicious legislation of the previous dispensation, they set about to enact a raft of new national legislation (over 1200 at the last counting) all of which was driven by the singular objective of control.
The result of all these interventions is that there are labour laws that destroy jobs, mining laws that have practically destroyed the once prosperous mining industry, legislation designed to control the medical profession and medical services that systematically undermines these essential services, Twin Peaks legislation that will surely create another massive bureaucracy while destroying much of the financial services industry. And now, the Hate Speech Bill, that will destroy the right to the freedom of expression. In each of these instances, and there are very many more, the opportunity for corruption and the pleading of a special interest is increased and individual liberty, surrendered. 
When President Jacob Zuma invited the well-heeled to attend the ANC jamboree with the observation that the return upon the extravagant cost of the event would be handsomely rewarded by the business opportunities on offer, he was openly soliciting those seeking the benefit of a corrupt patronage to participate in a bounteous feast. There were, no doubt, very many takers. The astonishing thing is that there was so little outrage expressed at this brazenly corrupt proposal.
Against such formidable abuse of authority there is only the sanctuary of the rule of law. As with the Nkandla scandal, Zuma and his innumerable puppets must be taught that they are all accountable to the law. If the National Prosecuting Authority will not fulfil its constitutionally mandated task and do so on behalf of the public, then the public, through representative organisations and NGOs, must do so in its stead.  
The ANC government will, in its relentless pursuit of self-interest, surely ignore the wisdom of Tacitus, but that wisdom will certainly outlast the ignorant prediction, made by Jacob Zuma, of the “1,000 year reign”. 
 
Rex van Schalkwyk is a former judge of the Supreme Court of South Africa and is the chairman of the FMF’s Rule of Law Board of Advisers. He is the author of three books and numerous published articles. This article may be republished without prior consent but with acknowledgement to the author. The views expressed in the article are the author’s and are not necessarily shared by the members of the Free Market Foundation.﻿

Op-Ed: The wisdom of Tacitus on corrupt states withstood the test of time

The U.S. State Department has approved a possible $418 million sale to Kenya of aircraft with weapons and related support, a Pentagon agency said on Monday.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement the approval was for the possible sale of up to 12 Air Tractor AT-802L planes and two AT-504 trainer aircraft, a weapons package, technical support and program management. The prime contractor is L3 Technologies Inc, formerly known as L-3 Communications, at its Platform Integration Division, in Waco, Texas.﻿

U.S. State Dept approves possible $418 mn military aircraft sale to Kenya

06 – 11 November 2016
The month of November has certainly ushered in a decent dose of political surprises. Whilst there are important economic data expected out next week, if this week is anything to go by, political developments (both locally and globally) will continue to be a key factor driving sentiment and financial markets.
The rand once again found itself in a tug of war, being pulled in opposite directions by various factors. Locally, the state prosecutor’s announcement of the withdrawal of the charges against the Finance Minister, Pravin Gordhan was rand positive. The local unit extended these gains following another surprise announcement that President Jacob Zuma had withdrawn his application to interdict the release of the Public Protector’s state of capture report. The news caused the currency to rally, however, the release of the actual report failed to inspire any further significant gains. Although the initial announcement was also market positive, political uncertainty still looms. Further gains were also muted by political moves abroad &#8211; news that the presidential race between Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton had narrowed, caused the Mexican Peso to come under pressure (the Peso being widely seen as a proxy for Trump’s chances). Other emerging market currencies, such as the rand, were also negatively impacted. Interestingly enough, the US dollar also took the news of Trump making strides badly causing the currency to weaken.
While we continue to track the rand’s performance, here is what can be expected from the local economic calendar next week:
  Monday, November 07:
Foreign Exchange Reserves (Oct)
 Thursday, November 10:
Mining Production M/M and Y/Y (Sep), Manufacturing Production
 
M/M and Y/Y (Sep)
In less than a week, the presidential race turned tighter than ever as Republican nominee Donald Trump&#8217;s polling numbers spiked after a letter emerged stating that the FBI was looking into new emails relating to Clinton. What seemed like a sure victory for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton quickly turned into a nail-biting race to the finish line.
Political developments hold the potential to fundamentally change the policy landscape, hence the recent impact on investor sentiment and market trends. Health care is one of the sectors most exposed to the outcome of the US election and the results next week will determine whether the US health care environment will continue to evolve in the direction established by the Affordable Care Act or revert back to a less regulated system. In terms of monetary policy, the Fed has been criticised for sacrificing monetary orthodoxy in order to support growth. Important factions within the Republican Party favour a gold standard or an explicit policy rule such as the Taylor Rule for the Fed to follow. The implications of following a conventional Taylor Rule approach would translate into significantly higher rates than that currently prevailing. One would make the assumption that Fed Chair Yellen would not be reappointed under a Trump administration when her term expires in February 2018.
Markets would prefer a Clinton victory, as it represents “more of the same” in terms of policy, while a Trump win would usher in major shifts in policy and create considerable uncertainty.
 
Here is what else to look out for on the international agenda: ﻿
 Sunday, November 06:
Bank Of Japan Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes
 Monday, November 07:
EUR Retail Sales M/M and Y/Y (Sep), US Labour Market
Conditions Index (Oct),
US Consumer Credit Change (Sep),
Japan Foreign Reserves (Oct)
  Tuesday, November 08:
US Presidential Election,
China Trade Balance (Oct),
German Trade Balance (Sep),
German Industrial Production M/M And Y/Y (Sep)
German Current Account (Sep),
UK Manufacturing Production M/M And Y/Y (Sep),
UK Industrial Production M/M and Y/Y (Sep),
UK Inflation Report Hearings,
UK National Institute Of Economic and Social Research GDPEstimates (3M) (Oct),
Japan Machinery Orders M/M And Y/Y (Sep)
  Wednesday, November 09:
UK RICS Housing Price Balance (Oct),
China CPI M/M And Y/Y (Oct)
China PPI Y/Y (Oct),
UK Total Trade Balance (Sep),
European Commission Releases Economic GrowthForecasts,
Reserve Bank Of New York
 Thursday, November 10 :
US Initial Jobless Claims ( Nov4)
 Friday, November 11 :
China FDI YTD (Oct), China “Singles’ Day”
 
@novareholdings
www.novare.com  ﻿

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Buhari to meet Trump: This is what they will discuss

U.S. pledges to help Africa fight terrorism

Karingana wa Karingana founder on scaling up the textile industry

Forbes Woman Africa wins international awards

Op-Ed: The wisdom of Tacitus on corrupt states withstood the test of time

U.S. State Dept approves possible $418 mn military aircraft sale to Kenya

The economic week ahead

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Buhari to meet Trump: This is what they will discuss

U.S. pledges to help Africa fight terrorism

Karingana wa Karingana founder on scaling up the textile industry

Forbes Woman Africa wins international awards

Op-Ed: The wisdom of Tacitus on corrupt states withstood the test of time

U.S. State Dept approves possible $418 mn military aircraft sale to Kenya

The economic week ahead

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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