Page 46 - Azerbaijan State University of Economics

THE JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC SCIENCES: THEORY AND PRACTICE, V.75, # 1, 2018, pp. 42-56

Concepts, principles and components of the administrative system in Islam,
based on the standpoint of Imam Ali (AS) in his book, Nahj al-Balagha

A) Structural Factors

Political Factors

Since autocratic political systems are not selected through the people’s vote, they
have no accountability to the people, and this is the most important factor for the
development of corruption in administrative systems. Hence, in traditional
approaches to the administration of government issues, the theory of separation of
the administrative system from the political system, in order to prevent the
administrative system from being corrupted. According to this theory, managers and
employees are not accountable to the people and society. But in the Islamic system,
the political system is the basis of the administrative system; so that the correctness
and corruption of the administrative system are the results of correctness and
corruption in the political system. It should be said that as the public will and
supervision affect the formation and sustainability of the divine political system, it
also influence the decision-making process and the implementation of plans in the
divine administrative system. Monitoring the performance of the administrative
system is necessary for preserving the correctness and sustainability of the system
(Sheikhi, 2011: 117).

Advisory decision-making

The logic of the Qur’an is that, even if the leader of the society has the highest
position among humans (namely, the Prophet Muhammad (AS)), the Islamic
community should not rely solely on him. In other words, this dependence should
not be to an extent that could lead to destruction of the foundation of the society in
case of Prophet Muhammad (AS) not being present (Agha Piroz et al., 2015: 116).
Therefore, it is obvious that individual decisions often lead to autocracy and
eventually make the whole organization inefficient. Hence, Islam has emphasized
advice and consultation with others, in order to undertake the administrative actions
correctly. As stated by Imam Ali (AS), anyone who consults with the wise men, will
be guided in the right way (Nahj al-Balagha, Saying 173). This indicates that
regarding the standpoint of Islam in general and the standpoint of Imam Ali (AS) in
particular, people should use opinions of experts and wise men, but final decision
must be made by a single person.

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