On April 30 this year, we witnessed the election of new Muslim Association of Malawi (MAM) National Chairman Sheikh Idrissa Muhammad who will lead the Muslims’ mother body for the next five years. The Sheikh won the elections in a pleasing landslide victory with Muslims in the country hoping that the new chair and his entire team would help to solve problems which have hit the association for a decade.
However, now Malawian Muslims want his works and that he fulfil his promises made prior to the elections. We request him to follow the footsteps of our prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) because it is a well-known fact that the Prophet was not just a hero but the supremely successful man in the entire human history.
By studying the life of the Prophet (saw), we think the new Chair can derive those principles which were followed by the Prophet (saw). Indeed, the Prophet (saw) was a successful leader. All his activities were result-oriented. He completely refrained from all such steps as may prove counter-productive. We hope and believe the chair will try to do so.
The first principle which was followed by the Prophet is well explained in a saying of Aishah (wife of the Prophet) when she said: “Whenever the Prophet had to choose between two options, he always opted for the easier choice.” (Al-Bukhari) Choosing the easiest option means to begin from the possible, because it likely that one who begins from the possible will surely reach his goal.
The Chairman should also know that where there are problems, there are also opportunities. And the way to success is to ignore the problems and avail the opportunities as the guiding verse in the Quran says: “With every hardship there is ease, with every hardship there is ease.” (94:5-6).
We still remember his promise that he will make sure that there is transparency and accountability in the organisation. We ask him to take this notion seriously by putting MAM into account so that our trust from donors should be restored.
Nevertheless, Malawian Muslims will be more than happy if the Chairman’s first plan would be to introduce an Islamic television channel and establish the much touted Islamic International University in this country. Of course, we know that those will need a lot of money of which MAM cannot afford now, but we hope and believe that the new executive has the skills and potential to procure enough resources for the implementation of the projects.
We wish him and his entire new Executive Committee success in their endeavours. May Allah the Almighty make their job easy.
