umm Abdillah, Radio Islam Programming – 2014.04.22

 

Editorial writer for Ar-Rasheed, the official newsletter of the Jamiatul Ulama South Africa, Ebrahim Patel of Middelburg, spoke to Radio Islam’s umm Abdillah taking us through our ephemeral dreams of a Caliphate and some of the flaws of democracy. Actively involved in Leadership development; Media; Education; and having won several Entrepreneurship awards, he has written encouragingly on this subject – urging participation, and of ridding our notions that politicking is a dirty and sullied profession.

 

“Think Global, Act Local”

 

Before we begin on the subject of the flaws of democracy, let us talk about the Islamic Caliphate and the black flag talk yonder. Many people believe this is an ideal to aspire towards, hence distance themselves from the here-and-now?

 

Comment:

 

The Caliphate is a dream, something we aspire towards. We cannot however use our aspirations to neglect what’s happening on our local soil. First focus on a localised Caliphate: a bond with the Muslims of African soil, our African milieu and a cohesive use of our resources for and within South Africa.

 

The non-Muslim world may certainly not use the term ‘Caliphate’, but they’re building their own Caliphate in Europe by erasing borders, using one currency and enforcing centralised rule. By any other name, this is a Caliphate. Our sad reality is we’re erecting more and more borders and barriers between Muslim countries; have no single currency, let alone a single Amir.

 

The Muslim Disconnect – YES, WE CAN (do better)

 

Too often the calls for further involvement and mobilisation are very aggressive and hostile. It is a given; we do have a rich past in so far as the freedom struggle, but is there a limit to what to expect of the Muslim community in South Africa, post-apartheid? We’re a fledgling 2% of the population, actively involved in what we do best – trade. And by virtue of that, we contribute extensively from a charitable perspective to empowering many sectors. Maybe we are already doing what we do best; and to demand further that we become fully engaged in civil service and government is too high an expectation from such a young democracy or the ‘born-frees’?

 

Comment:

 

We can still do better even within those contexts, and it doesn’t take much. Nor does it require a special form of expertise or too much from the born-frees’. Trade is only a part of what we do best. By becoming involved in local politics, we can influence decision making across a whole range of issues like improving education, reducing poverty, developing entrepreneurs etc. We have a lot more to work with than just trade.

 

And there’s more. Instead of re-inventing the wheel insofar as Muslim Schools for example, a different model in every town, why don’t we consider mastering the model? Instead of dozens of Muslim schools, how about just one that has the impact of a Harvard for example. Instead of numerous types of Muslims schools how about one of our own teacher-training colleges that feeds to those same Muslim schools? That way we can further positively manipulate the outcome (of those who graduate) from those Muslim schools.

 

Another example – instead of a multitude of relief organisations doing exactly the same amount of work with varying levels of impact we can condense our charity organisations to one or two. This would then force us to have a unified approach to how we dispense our zakaah and sadaqah.

 

We need to relook at grass roots involvement. Imagine the impact of coordinated sandwiches and water at the postal queues when elderly government grants or pension handouts are received. Would the impact of da’wah not be greater if our kids from all Muslim schools spent as little as 30 minutes there once a month? Imagine this impact duplicated in thirty towns?

 

Beyond zakaah and education: skills development – sewing centres in every town. Or, using our money to fund the best students to train and serve at country-wide eye clinics. We’re talking about Muslim-run and Muslim-led social organisations where employers and employees have a single-minded purpose – using our passions and abilities for local, national and international benefit.

 

We have a dozen different publications from a dozen different sources piled up at our masjid, all recycling the same concept. Yet, not a single Muslim publication being sold at our CNA’s and Exclusive Books, offering alternative views. We have a small Muslim media sector, but no pool of media specialists who can regularly address the National Media. Are we saying this is too much for the born free generation? Where is our training and education going then?

 

This doesn’t ask too much of us, just a rethink and re-strategising of our resources. We need to have long-term goals.

 

“The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter”

 

Criticism of democracy has always existed in democratic societies.  Much of the criticism claims democracy is economically inefficient, politically idealistic and morally corrupt.

 

The Churchill aphorism has been quoted often enough: “Democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.”

 

Let’s run through some of the flaws of modern democracy and why despite all of them, we still need to vote and participate in our hard-earned democracy?

 

Comment:

 

– Aprioristic Equality:

 

One of the foundations of democracy is the assumption that all votes are equal. It assumes that all opinions are worth the same. The reality: we are putting the same value on the opinions of the educated and the ignorant, and the law-abiding citizens and thieves.

 

Also, by assuming that all opinions are equal, we are also assuming that most people are able to reach a rational, informed decision after seriously exploring all pros and cons.

 

– Populism

 

A common criticism of democracy is that it devolves into a popularity contest. Polls don’t decide who is right—that’s simply decided by whoever is most willing to say what people like to hear. As a result, many candidates to political office resort to populism, pursuing policies that focus on the immediate satisfaction of whims instead of long-term improvements.

 

– Tribal Mentality

 

In a democracy, tribal mentality is very dangerous, because it will make you vote “for your team” instead of voting according to issues. That means that whoever leads “your team” can rest assured that they have your vote, and instead of focusing on your interests, they can proceed to deal with their own. It also leads to the problem of mob rule and state secrets.

 

– Complex Accountability

 

When a dictatorship falls, it is fairly easy to hold someone accountable for any crimes committed by the State. If dictators or oligarch officials commit a crime in opposition to their official platform and without the knowledge of the public, it is simply their own fault and the people who voted for them are innocent. However, if a democratically elected candidate advocates curtailing human rights for a minority for example, and carries out his plan, voters themselves are also responsible to some degree. Same with corruption. These are just some of the flaws of Democracy.

 

Despite all these, let us ask ourselves what other option we have? Isolation is worse. If we stay estranged of the process do we then have a right to complain? If we choose not to engage, how do we expect to make a difference? We currently have the best constitution in the world, and the reality is it does best to serve our needs as Muslims.

 

Further, this democracy has been hard-won. Our people have given their limbs and lives for this privilege. While it may be an imperfect system, the implications of estrangement are far worse.

 

Radio Islam: Educating, Empowering, Mobilising.