Page 47 - Azerbaijan State University of Economics

Mahtab Jafari: The Relationship between Performance of the Administrative System and
National Authority of Governments: An Islamic Point of View

Rule of Law

The most important principle in the administration is the adherence of all individuals
and especially managers to the law. Because the factor that sustains the correctness
of governments and guarantees their public support is adherence to the law. In this
regard, during his deprivation of the government, Imam Ali (AS) reminded
managers that: "There are three things that if you honor them and act based on them,
you don’t need anything else; and if you neglect them, nothing else will benefit you.
The three things are implementing the law equally for yourself and the strangers,
following God’s principles in happiness and anger, and fair and equal distribution of
wealth among black and white (Al-Asqalani, 1946: 227).

Transparency

The concealment of issues and subjects from the sight of the people, underlies illegal
and criminal actions. generally, if all issues are clear, many problems such as bribery,
injustice and potential corruption in the Government, hidden and self-seeking
relationships, hidden transactions that cannot be audited, etc. will be vanished and
generally, a situation like this increases the efficiency of the governance and
management. In this regard, Imam Ali (AS) regarded the transparency of issues as the
basis of government. In the beginning of his governance, Imam Ali (AS) stated that: I
swear to Allah that I have never concealed any truth, and I have never lied (Nahj al-
Balagha, Sermon 16). He also stated that: It is your right and I promise that I will
never hide a secret from you, unless during a war (Nahj al-Balagha, Letter 50).

Accountability

Responsibility is a prerequisite of management. This means that anyone is
accountable and responsible in accordance with their role. Imam Ali has said, “I
recommend you to be afraid of God about what you do at your own responsibility,
because you are pledged to it”. Every man has a commitment to his own
achievement, says God. He says, “God warns you to beware of his punishment.
Indeed, to him all will return”. Then he says, “Thus, Swear to your God, I will ask
all of them about what they were doing”. O Servants of God, you know that God
will ask you about your actions (Majlesi, 1670: 543).

Organizational Supervision

In order to prevent the employees from violating the laws and offending the rights of
the people, as well as to preserve the integrity of the administrative system,
monitoring the administrations and the employees of the departments is essential.
Imam Ali (AS) wrote a letter to one of his managers and told him: “I heard that you

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