Excess of taxation kills…

« Trop d’impôt tue l’impôt » : « Too much taxation kills tax », said Arthur B. Laffer([1]). Ibn Khaldoun said in his Mouqaddima that the increase in taxation is a sign of decadence of the state.

In Tunisia, a local development expert just told me that there are nearly 380 varieties of dates, including a very rare variety, called “Daglet el-Bey“, which existed in the Djeridregion. This variety was so delicious and appreciated that the Mehalla, the military force in charge of collecting taxes in the Beys’ era, with unlimited powers and complete absence of control despite the fact that it was accompanied by a tax judge, supposed to have the function of counteracting the aberrations of tax collectors, has had the bad tradition of monopolizing almost all the production of this “Daglet el Bey“. When they arrived, the farmer saw nothing but sacking and despair.

Having become unprofitable because of this arbitrary and excessive taxation, landowners have decided to get rid of these trees. As a result, this variety almost completely disappeared except for the military governor of Mareth in the south-east of the country who had the idea of planting nearly 86 palm trees in his garden. Thus, it was thanks to the de factoadvantages enjoyed by this governor, who was able to escape the insatiable appetite of the tax administration, that this variety, which I do not know personally, was saved.

Way to say that, more than smoking, too much taxation does not only kill the tax, but it can also kill anything!

([1]) The famous Laffer curve explains and summarizers the theory of Adam Smith and David Ricardo (Adam Smith : « The Wealth of Nations », Book V, Chapter II, section 2.

Ahmed Ouerfelli

Lawyer – arbitrator