I. Wealth distribution and preventing hoarding of
money
The state is obliged to ensure there is an economic
equilibrium in society such that each individual has the means to access
wealth.
The disparity between the ultra‐rich and the wider society
is acute in Egypt, because the Capitalist system inevitably traps wealth
amongst an elite. This is accentuated where wealth and access to wealth are
unfairly allocated based on nepotism and patronage. All the rest of society is effectively
disenfranchised.
In this situation the government needs to break this
stranglehold. Illegal acquisition of wealth, property and resources will be
reversed. The Shari'ah also prohibits the hoarding of money (gold and silver in
the case of the Islamic State). This refers to wealthy individuals who
accumulate money without spending it, regardless of whether or not they pay
Zakat. Hoarding reduces the money supply be removing money from circulation.
This means less spending, less demand for goods, less production and thus more
unemployment.
The Shari'ah recognizes the relationship between hoarding
money and damaging the economy and so prohibits it completely. This
necessitates disclosure of excess wealth and the investigation and prosecution
of citizens who attempt to hoard money.
Shari'ah inheritance laws ensure wealth is precisely broken
up and distributed amongst defined family rather than being transferred to
favoured individuals.
II. Administering national assets in the public
interest
All Shari'ah defined national assets will be brought under
government ownership or oversight. This is not carte blanche nationalization
since the Shari'ah classifies resources such as water sources, pasture, forestry,
minerals and energy sources as national or public assets, and it clearly identifies
the classes of assets and companies that the government cannot nationalize.
It is quite clearly not in the public interest to allow
private individuals to own and exploit these critical properties by holding the
public to ransom. The Shari'ah obliges the government to reclaim strategic properties
and associated assets and to administer them on behalf of the public.
Also included in this are items of infrastructure that are critical
to the public interest such as roads, waterways, communications infrastructure,
schools and hospitals. The community cannot do without these. Consequently the
Shari'ah obliges the government to maintain oversight here in such a way that sufficient
of these resources remain in non‐private hands, in order that the public
interest is preserved. The government would be required to take a view and if
necessary confiscate assets and then administer them on behalf of the public.
III. Protecting against corporate monopoly
The Shari'ah makes it illegal for an individual or company
or group of companies to seek to corner the market in a product and then use
this position to inflate prices. The government will investigate and prosecute
those attempting to monopolize the market and break up existing monopolies.
In Egypt for example in the steel industry 67% of the local
market share is held by one company whilst 2 private companies control the entire
mobile phone industry.
Dismantling monopolies would also provide business opportunities
by opening market access.
IV. Prevent corporate damage to societal values
Whilst business in general is encouraged by the Shari'ah,
businesses trading in prohibited goods and services or those leading to public
harm will be required to cease such activities by the government.
Tourism
Government will dramatically increase other sources of
revenue and it is envisaged that this will dwarf the volume of tourism based
revenue. The tourist industry will be encouraged to showcase the society of the
Islamic State but it will in no way be allowed to defy the Shari'ah by promoting
alcohol consumption, nudity on beaches and other socially polluting activities.
There is no legitimate rationale to allow tourism some form of exception and to
build a country's economy on tourism as a mainstay is an example of extremely
poor and short term policy making.
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