For ages and until the present we have been subscribing to the view that doing business is to maximise profit through selfish pursuits in the businessman’s own interest. As the sole purpose of the business sector is to maximise profit, it has no regard for the welfare of the customers. Also, the immediate impression that most people have about businessmen is that their profits are earned through manipulating and cheating.
On the other hand, people normally believe the consumer always wants to get value for his money. He will be very rational in ensuring every dollar he spends can bring him a dollar worth of satisfaction. Thus he is very much concerned about his own interest.
This understanding of businessmen and consumers in the social economic set-up may not be relevant and make us dynamic if we are thinking seriously of transforming our economy. Both sides have to be viewed positively and both sides need to work for mutual benefits through co-operation. Indeed both the businessman and consumer are members of society and each needs the other. Social stability and prosperity can be achieved if both behave for mutual benefits.
The win-win situation should be the right and humane approach in whatever tasks that individuals are doing. As members of society, both the business community and the public at large must have great ambitions. They should strongly believe that the success of the society as a whole can be attained when both parties regard each other’s interests.
The principle of profit through social responsibility should be the best guideline for the business sector to follow. The business sector should attain its profit through efficient and quality services rather than through manipulation.
For the society or a nation to realise harmony in all spheres of its endeavours, including business, its social order must be developed on solid humane foundation. Its worldview must be centred on holistic and comprehensive dimension. This approach to societal organisation will give great emphasis to social harmonisation and co-operation that can lead to social stability and equilibrium.
Economic success can be attained and sustained in a social system which is able to minimise social ills and disparities. Towards this goal, the role of religion has to be given great priority without any reservation. Evidently, the social system of Islam is diametrical contrary of modern secularism. Secularism tries to remove the social affairs of society from every possible influence by religion.
In the Islamic scheme of social arrangement, the religious instructions are to guide society for continuous success and advancement through the doing of good deeds and eschewing of evils. In fact, a larger portion of the corpus of Islamic law belongs to muamalat (business transaction) which is obviously social in its purport. This emphasis will minimise unfair and evil practices in all human activities, including business.
In the Holy Quran, God commanded: “Let there be of you an ummah (community) which calls humanity to righteousness, which enjoins the good and forbids the evil. Only such ummah is felicitous”. (Quran 3:104) God further instructed in another verse of the Holy Quran, “You are the best ummah brought forth unto mankind. For you enjoin the good works, prohibit the evil and have faith in Allah”. (Quran 3:110).
According to Professor Ismail Raji al-Faruqi, Islam, from the beginning defines religion itself as the very business of life, the very matter of space time, the very process of history-which it declares innocent, good and desirable in itself because it is the creation, the gift of God. It insists that humanity conduct worldly pursuits as an approach to build proper human civilisation. It refuses to look at worldly pursuits in isolation from the whole activity and responsibility of man, and insists, instead, on putting them in proper perspective.
Islam wants human to pursue what is natural: to eat and drink, to have lodging and comfort, to make of the world a garden, to enjoy sex, friendship and all the good things of life, to develop the sciences and to learn, to usufruct nature, to associate and to build socio-political structure-in short, to do all these things, but to do them righteously, without lying and cheating, without stealing and exploiting, without injustice to self, to neighbour, to nature, and to history.
In our quest to harmonise the interests of all segments of our society towards nation’s economic transformation, we must be farsighted to give great emphasis on the approach of working co-operation among all sectors. Our efforts through PEMUDAH in harmonising the private and public sectors should be applauded.
At the same time, in the present nature of global community, we have to think big and make all our moves relevant. We have to be adventurous and enterprising. Islam being the religion for the entire humanity was and is always approach social organisation based on human ideals and universal principles. It can never restrict itself to the members of any tribe and race. Neither does its teachings are limited to space and time.
In the present social scenario, in order for us to continue develop our societies and nations we have a lot to learn from our religion. The spirit and principles of Islam have to be translated into policy guidelines and mechanisms for us to organise a harmonious, fair, stable and advanced society. The spirit and principles of fairness (justice) and co-operation have to be inculcated in all policy formulations and mechanisms. These include in all areas of social arrangement be they politic, judiciary and economic. Through this approach there is a big possibility that a harmonious relationship can be inculcated and developed in all of their social arrangements and activities. Indeed this is a prerequisite to materialise our Economic Transformation Programme.