In The Name of Allah Most Gracious Most Merciful

In Response to an Article Published In the Trinidad Express 17th

May 2010, Entitled 'Stay Away From The Polls'
Assalaamu ‘Alaiykum to all my dear Brothers and Sisters;

Please allow me to respond using the ‘tawkeel’ argument.

Voting in the Trinidad and Tobago General Election is an act of delegation (tawkeel)
where a delegator (muwakkil) appoints a delegate (wakeel) to act on one’s behalf.
Tawkeel (delegation) is a legitimate Islamic contract and is used in cases such as
representing someone for marriage or for the guardianship of minors.

Tawkeel, as an Islamic contract, has to proceed according to the rules of Islam.

One pillar of tawkeel is that the delegator (muwakkil) can only delegate that which
the Shari’ah deems permissible since the delegate (wakeel) acts on behalf of the
delegator (muwakkil). So what is halaal for the delegator (muwakkil) can be
delegated and what is haraam for the delegator (muwakkil) cannot be delegated.

For example it is halaal (permissible) for me to delegate another to buy me a pint of

milk as it is halaal for me to buy a pint of milk. It is haraam (forbidden) for me to
delegate another to rob my neighbours since it is haraam for me to rob my
neighbours. This is known as Ghiyaab ul-Mawaani Ash-Shari’ah (the absence of any
divine prohibition).

Returning to the fiqh al-mas’alah (or specific reality) of voting in the Trinidad and
Tobago General Election we face an insurmountable obstacle. The problem is that
this is a delegation for someone to represent them, according to manifesto of the
delegate (wakeel), in a legislative chamber – in this case the Trinidad and Tobago
Parliament as an MP.

Worse still, the delegator (muwakkil) cannot specify or hold the delegate (wakeel),
in this case the MP, to only act on their behalf on certain matters e.g. against Israel
or against foreign invasions such as of Iraq and Afghanistan. The MP will generally
legislate, vote on legislation, debate legislation, help to draft legislation, amend
legislation, propose legislation and defend legislation on behalf of the delegator
(muwakkil).

Here we have to ask if it is halaal (permissible) for a Muslim to do any of the things
that the delegate (wakeel), in this case the MP, will do.

It is a matter of ‘aqeedah that a Muslim does not have a say when it comes to
legislation:

“It is not for a believer, man or woman, when Allah and His Messenger have
decreed a matter that they should have any option in their decision” (Translated
Meaning of Al-Qur’an [TMQ] 33:36)
This is because the right of legislation is only for Allaah SWT (c.f. TMQ 12:40).

Muslims should look to the Shari’ah for all matters:

“But no, by your Lord, they can have no (real) faith until they make you judge in all
disputes between them and find in their souls no resistance against your decisions,
but accept them with the fullest submission” (TMQ 4:65)

Not to man-made legislation, which is Taghut (an authority other than Allaah SWT):

“Have you seen those (hypocrites) who claim that they believe in that which has
been sent down to you, and that which has been sent down before you, and they
wish to go for judgment (in their disputes) to the Taghut while they have been
ordered to reject them?” (TMQ 4:60)

So I disagree with the comment that “Voting and participating in the electoral
process is not tantamount to legislating against Islam” because voting in the
Trinidad and Tobago General Election and delegating an MP to act on your behalf is
getting involved in legislation without doubt.

As Muslims we should stay with the halaal regardless of our desire (hawah) for any
perceived benefits:

“Have you (O Muhammad SAW) seen him who has taken as his ilah (god) his own
desire (hawah)? Would you then be a wakeel (delegate) over him? Or do you think
that most of them hear or understand? They are only like cattle; nay, they are even
farther astray from the Path.” (TMQ 25:43-44)

You are right that we face difficult times and you are right to call the Ummah to
action and for that I applaud you but legislating by man-made law, in violation of
the Islamic ‘aqeedah, is a line we cannot consider crossing. We should instead have
tawakkul (trust/reliance) in Allaah SWT:

“Do they then seek the judgment of (the Days of) Ignorance (Jahiliyyah)? And who is
better in judgment than Allah for a people who have firm belief?” [TMQ 5:50]

Wa- Salaam
Umar Abdullah