Prioritising the poor

By April 2013, 105 billionaires had signed the pledge and Patrice Motsepe of South Africa is the first to sign outside of the United States. But of course one need not be a billionaire to help others who are less fortunate, and the Muslim community in particular could offer more.According to the Centre for Global […]

By April 2013, 105 billionaires had signed the pledge and Patrice Motsepe of South Africa is the first to sign outside of the United States. But of course one need not be a billionaire to help others who are less fortunate, and the Muslim community in particular could offer more.
According to the Centre for Global Prosperity Ameri-can philanthropic giving in 2010 was US$39 billion to developing countries. Most of the data on giving was not categorized geographically, but of those funds so iden-tified, Sub-Saharan Africa received the most; and of that, 53% was for health and medical services. These philanthropic contributions were from private founda-tions, educational and religious organizations, and individuals. Doing good through dedicating time as well as resources are valuable as well.  Two former US Presidents ended their tenure in less than satisfactory situations but have now re-established their reputations, thanks to their charitable work. The Clinton Global Initiative holds its annual gathering back to back with the United Nations General Assembly each September. In its first decade of its operations, more than 400 million peo-ple have benefitted from its operations. President Jimmy Carter is more popular now than when he was the President of the United States. The Carter Centre has become synonymous with good cause and President Carter is one of “The Elders” and among the few voices of moral authority in the world. Those of us in Nigeria will always remember his role in the eradication of guinea worm. The two are reminder that there are worthy causes for Nigeria’s numerous former presidents outside of political office.
There are other generous people in the world but there is no comprehensive data.   Anyone who knows the University of Port Harcourt in 2000 and compare it with the current situation will notice significant infrastructural improvement as a result of the activities of the alumni association and the University Advancement Centre. The MacArthur Foundation hel-ped to establish the “Friends of the University of Port Harcourt”. The Board of the Advancement Centre of the University of Ibadan chaired by Abdulsalami Abubakar and the alumni association under the leadership of Gamaliel Onosode and Michael Omolaye has been very supportive of the University. At ABU Zaria, a modest investment by the MacArthur Foundation and complemented by other Nigerians have increased access to bandwidth from 7 megabits in 2001 to 300 megabits in 2012.The University has the largest network of fibre connection of more than 70 kilometres in West Africa. TY Danjuma is the single largest donor to the University with the sum of N2.3 billion and a group of alumni architects led by Mohammed Dewu of the University matched in kind. Hassan Dantata is probably most generous donor to Bayero University Kano. Other donors like Nura Khalil have enabled that University to increase the number of computers on campus.
MKO Abiola was out-standing but his contributions are not remembered by the younger generation because they were never institutio-nalized Abiola like many other generous Nigerians helped out in times of dif-ficulties. But more can be done.  
Historically beneficiaries of waqf have been hospitals, orphanages, schools, mos-ques, soup kitchens, libraries and inns, and it doesn’t discriminate on the basis of faith or ethnicity. An out-standing beneficiary of waqf is the University of al Azhar established in Cairo in 972. It was financed by its waqf revenues until the government of Muhammad Ali in Egypt took control over in 1812. Financing education through foundations promoted free-dom of education and created a learned class not derived from the rich and ruling classes alone but also the poor and lower classes.
In addition to efforts by some state governments to establish Zakat and Waqf Commissions, many politicians do set up charities but most them rise and fall with election cycles. JAIZ Charity and Development Foundation is the most recent structured waqf.   
Adamu Adamu is one of the lone advocates who identify optional Hajj and Umrah(lesser Hajj) as major sources of funds for charitable activities. Nearly 90,000 Nigerian Muslims perform hajj every year; it is not obligatory for many of them and for some it has become a tradition to perform the hajj every year. In addition about 300,000 perform Umrah every year, a tradition which is so bizarre that it has taken the form of a carnival amongst Nigerians. To make the situation worst this year many intended pilgrims paid bribes of up to N300,000 to get visas. It doesn’t dawn on them that they are committing an offence under Islamic law for them to perform an Islamic voluntary act.  
I found the position of Mek Mahmud persuasive on why Muslims should give priority to waqf over optional Hajj and Umrah. One argument is a principle derived from the practice of Ibn Annas: where there is a conflict between voluntary worship and social responsibility, the rule is to fulfil the latter. Ibn Annas was reported to be performing I’tikaf(spiritual retreat) when someone came to the mosque and complained to him that he was indebted and had no means to repay. Ibn Annas then asked the person to follow him outside the mosque so that he could speak to him, an act which violated his spiritual retreat. When Ibn Annas was reminded of the violation he responded that he heard from the Prophet that whoever walks for the needs of his brother/sister and fulfils that need.
The recent demonstration by 8,000 strong members of the Amalgamated Association of Widows in Gusau, where the first wave of revival of Shariah started, makes a strong case for waqf. Muslims must be concerned to other peoples` misery and suffering. Indeed, as Mahmud further argued, poverty-stricken people who have no access to education, health care, or daily means of sustenance should not be expected to be a part of productive and meaningful citizenry. In addition, any person who spends lavishly on leisure trips, feasts, and wedding parties among others while the poor and the orphans starve in his/her backyard is committing the offence of prodigality (israf) and lavish spending (tabdhir). It is worst when such practices become a custom and widen the gap between the rich and poor leading the poor to commit crime in order to survive.
The Muslim community must get its priorities right and respond to the challenges of poverty, maternal death, polio, illiteracy and malnutrition by establishing charitable foundations and avoiding prodigality and lavish spending.
 
Dr Shettima wrote from Abuja