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Should Taqwa be the heart of our leadership?

Background to the subject:

The first subject put up for discussion is "Should Taqwa be the heart of our leadership?" by Hussein W. Datoo,  Dar es Salaam  E mail optimec@raha.com 

This subject relates to an article carried in the August 2001 issue of the Federation Samachar. The article reads as follows: 

There is a danger that those who are in leadership positions in our small community may be leaning on a crooked stick. It may be that our reliance upon experiences of the past, the struggles and strategies of the years gone by is no longer relevant to the contemporary context of the Jamaats. We are in a danger not only of being curators of religious antiquities, but also in the point of danger depending on things that are not there anymore.

An institution born in the matrix of human suffering and pain, birthed a generation of leaders who - with remarkable skill and foresight created an institution, which remains, vast and impressive and also envied by the outsiders. Wherever we have settled, we have instituted Jamaats with discipline and vigor with the teachings of Ahlulbayt (a.s.).

Our forefathers have managed to hold on to the Islam Original with sacrifices. Even a casual visitor to our institutions will agree that our institution represents a community that is vibrant and given the history will not hesitate to conclude that our forefathers had vision. 

Visit any town or city in East Africa and you will be reminded by memories of great personalities who have been in the forefront of our community development who made these Jamaats a source of psychological strength and spiritual wholeness to the community far and wide. 

We have won praise from all our Marjas of our time who have said Khojas are an example to be emulated by other Shia institutions worldwide.

Alarm bells sounded. 

Times have indeed changed. but the priorities remain the same as in the yesteryears. Our forefathers were also then concerned with education and economic empowerment of the community as we are today. 

In the last 50 years our community has settled in far-flung places, which was never thought of. Our traditions and culture have also started to be diluted and there remains a distant threat that if the young generation is exposed to unthinkable external forces, the very fabric of our closely-knit society will shake. Globalization has started to bite us and also our survival is at stake spiritually, socially and economically.

In Tanzania for example it is no secret that the "container culture" has taken an unforgettable toll, and though cited as the good old days - has in fact degenerated part of our community into materialistic zombies. During that decade, education was given less attention, we were blinded with abundant materialistic possessions, and wealth was flaunted on mundane things and the carefree laissez-faire attitude created a dangerous illusion that the whole community had prospered like never before. This massive wealth sometimes blemished life and its values and some started paying lip service to religion and the community, having been caught in the rat race to reach targets as if the end of the world was nigh! Today, business competition, indegenization and globalization of the economy are further pushing the traditional dukawallah aside and are taking a heavy toll with no sign of abating, call it a blessing or a curse, Allah (s.w.t.) knows best. 

Showing off wealth in the most un-Islamic way was our past time and still is! Look at our marriage ceremonies.... need I say more? Moral principles have been compromised for opulent lifestyles. We were and are still living beyond our means and also wealth is considered a yardstick for success and status - how you obtain this wealth is not morally questionable. The impact on our young generation has been totally negative and we have lost a generation of youths who have missed the boat of acquiring education, only to regret now when survival is for the fittest and everywhere there is a clamour for education. 

The alarm bells had started ringing fast but did not wake us from our slumber. The leadership is now grappled with a dilemma that threatens the very existence of our community. These undeniable changes that are occurring in our community stem from a culture that refuses to learn from the past. That is why in my opinion, with economic, cultural and socio changes this millennium requires effective leadership for the next generation. 

Leadership qualities.

When discussing about leadership the watchword taqwa is discussed but often misunderstood. At base however, the study of taqwa concerns itself with the right and wrong namely AMRABIL MAARUF and NAHY-ANIL MUNKAR of human behavior as well as with the consequence of human behavior.

Taqwa is a systematic examination of morals and principles of ideals as well as integrity and taqwa in leadership is significant fundamentally because that leadership affects the lives of community members. Taqwa should be in the strictest Islamic way as we are the torchbearers of Ahlulbayt (a.s.) who demonstrated and practiced taqwa in its most original form.

For a community as ours, conduct and moral obligations are of the highest prerequisite when one talks of leadership. If our leadership is not governed by taqwa the community will be affected because those at the helm could be destructive to the ethos of our spirituality as well as our well being.

Leadership has its complexities and dimensions and is not a matter of simply following simple rules. Leaders should be conscientious and must act as custodians of the community. Acting in accordance to taqwa is a most basic tenet of strong leadership. 

State of our Jamaats

To organize and sustain Jamaats is no easy feat agreed. But why is it that in our community wherever we go we find it difficult to find leaders? The community members hardly take interest in community affairs and this general lassitude is widespread in most Jamaats. The meetings when called are hardly well attended. 

What could be a reason for such passiveness? Many times we have witnessed that there are no leaders to take over the helm till someone who is unknown is bulldozed into the chair and Lo behold! Then through totalitarianism, criticism is not at all digestible, annual meetings are not called in time, accounts are not presented for years on end, and sometimes the constitution is also violated or changed, and with time the leadership evolves into virtual autocracy giving the impression of indispensability. All tactics are used to justify the continuity of their leadership, eventually this isolates the leadership from the mainstream community members and the blame falls conveniently on the community for their lack of participation at meetings. This is purely a "moral temptation " meaning a feeling of sacred attachment to lead the community and eventually creates a "clique leadership". 

The Jamaat meetings sometimes take a form of entertainment because everyone attends to watch the confrontation between an outspoken speaker and the Chairman. No meaningful progress is seen. When an election is called, the whole scenario erupts into a "Politics of vengeance". Personalities are more discussed than issues and all sorts of vendetta are expected from rival camps to further their cause. This in a community of the followers of ISLAM ORIGINAL! It may well be that as a community we have gone far but progressed little. Why this idiosyncrasy one may ask? All I can say is that this is due to the inability and indolence by our leaders to train and mould able community members to take over.

We must overcome the endemic cynicism that threatens the participation at our meetings and restore trust and confidence to ensure support of the majority of members. Leaders must be a role model for future generations to emulate. 

Education and civic responsibility. 

State of our learning Institutions 

We must educate our peers, children and grand children about the importance of civic engagement in the community; our leaders must develop more leaders - committed leaders. Education in the sense that the community members at least understand what goes around them. This starts at our learning institutions at grass root level. 

Leaders must also take full responsibility to create change, invest in long-term growth of the community and be able to recognize individual power. 

Let's take a look at our school and madrasa institutions. Take the case of the Al Muntazir Islamic Seminary. What is wrong heaven knows but isn't it a shame to see that our children are studying in other schools in spite of our own facility? 

Much as a parent I would like to send my children to Al Muntazir but there remains in me skepticism about the instability of the school, leave alone the system. 

Our community is spending a lot of money on educating our children in other schools when that money if ploughed into our efficient educational system can work wonders! 

In my estimation in Tanzania we are spending about 2 m US Dollars of our hard earned money to educate our children in other schools - an enormous amount as this can take us very far if our own school offers higher standards. We have problems, which we must not shy away from, granted the leaders cannot be expected to work miracles to solve all the problems that affect us but surely a long-term solution can be found. 

In my opinion the need to restructure or re-engineer our educational institutions is apparent as ever. Schools are moral institutions, designed to promote social norms. Emphasis must be on imparting quality education, which can mould our future society into good Muslims and produce future leaders with high standards of morality. Our schools and madressas must be geared to provide both Islamic and secular education to the fullest. It is high time that these institutions be run by professionals in the fields of education with our leaders overseeing the progress without due interference. 

The story is the same with our other organizations like the dispensary and hospital. We have not been able to elevate our hospital into a fine health center over a period of 20 years and our community members are forced to use other than our own facilities. 

We have to change. 

Our prescription for change begins with our personal pledge to have renewed emphasis on what strong character means for the leadership. With firm commitment we can push our community to new heights and leaders have to rise from our ranks. 

The dual responsibility for fostering a strong and healthy community is ours. It is precisely what Imam Ali (a.s.) had fought for during his lifetime. History has recorded that not a single person was hungry during his reign with his style of leadership and history has judged that "the era was a golden period in the history of Islam." 

The beautiful book Nahjul Balagah has numerous letters written by Imam Ali (a.s.) to his subordinates on leadership qualities, which has a marked relevance even to our present time. In fact this great book must be made into a textbook of learning in our institutions to instill good morals and leadership qualities to our children. 

Our leaders meanwhile have to abstain from a tendency of offering short-term solutions. Which in my opinion holds that as long as the leader has provided the community members with basic necessities in the religious field namely preachers, madressa, school, medical etc. they need not worry or care how the institutions fare - this will take care of itself. 

Issues that affect our leadership 

Our community over the years has become more aware of the world around us, has become mobile, and urbane and with the democratic institutions that we have nurtured we are able to respond to an appropriate style of leadership. This rising level of education, financial and social sophistication mean that leaders can no longer be people-centered. Coordinated leadership is necessary at every level in the community, which would provide new resources of information and creativity. 

A leader is accountable for all that goes on in the community, to shy away from real issues and show less concern is a weakness that has to be arrested. Acting in accordance with principles is the most basic conviction of strong democracy and the conscience of taqwa. 

Future of the community and leadership 

As to the future of the community, taqwa in leadership should be a minimum expectation; it should be a standard for both private and public characters. Then only electors and leaders will hold each other in high esteem. It is our responsibility for fostering a strong and healthy democracy in the community. While leaders must rise to the occasion, we must remember these leaders are from amongst us. Each one of us has a part to play. The first step towards holding our leaders to high standards is to hold ourselves to high standards and the community has a highest responsibility to choose the right leaders. Taqwa must matter when we choose our leaders. Anybody aspiring for leadership in our community must first ask some tough question that we demand from our present leaders. What would we do if we had the power of their positions? And more immediately what can we do now given the power of current positions? It is very difficult to articulate on concrete terms the strong character of true leaders in this day and age. The list of values that one must ask oneself if he aspires for public office are: 

1 Am I a practicing Muslim? 

2. Am I honest?

 3. Will I be able to work for common good? 

4 Do I have a vision for the community? 

In a nutshell: Is my mind and soul governed by taqwa in both character and action? Taqwa in leadership must become a habit, just as any craftsman develops his ability to create an object, and people become virtuous by practicing virtue. Taqwa is not something that can be held in reserve for momentous issues, it must be a constant demonstration. 

Leadership does not require heroic or economically crippling sacrifices but merely vision and commitment. They should serve selflessly and it is also essential that we revive the participation of the community at large in day to day running of the community. We need leaders who have the foresight to understand the needs of the community and create that environment where there is a collective and dedicated involvement of all community members. 

All members must be involved in decision-making. Blanket approvals and bulldozing of extravagant plans need a cautious approach because in my opinion we need to prioritize our investment in human resources first, rather than in grandiose projects which are very taxing to the community in these very stringent times. We need to strengthen our present institutions urgently with a drastic shake up required in our attitudes as well. 

We must not choose what is the most visible and convenient method of participation. Rather, we must find a relevant method of participation. 

When the leaders will be selflessly participating in community affairs there will be self-evidence of community participation and this will enhance progress for the benefit of all. 

"O Allah, let us bear out and hold up that which Thou maketh known to us as the truth, and let us be fully aware of that which we fall short of doing."  (Excerpt from Dua e Iftetah)

Period of discussion over the Net: This subject is being aired for discussion up to 31st December, 2001. Submissions should be sent to: The Web Manager samachar@raha.com or federation@raha.com