Ascertain The Truth
1.‘O ye who believe! If a wicked
person comes to you with any news, ascertain the truth, lest ye harm people
unwittingly, and afterwards become full repentance for what ye have done –
Surah Al- Hujarat, verse 6.
2.This verse was revealed during the
time whereby Prophet Muhammad SAW had instructed the Muslim soldiers to deal
with the Mustaliq tribe.This action was taken after Al Walid bin Uqbah reported
to Prophet Muhammad SAW that the Mustaliq tribe had threatened his life.Prophet
Muhammad SAW believed 100% what was told to him by Al Walid bin Uqbah without first
verifying the information.The Al Mighty Allah SWT knew that the report was not
true and revealed the verse.The real truth was that the Mustaliq tribe had set
out to meet Al Walid, Prophet Muhammad SAW’s messenger in collecting zakat. Without
verifying the information, Al Walid was thinking that the Mustaliq tribe wanted
to kill him and he reported as such to Prophet Muhammad SAW.
3.The difference between Prophet
Muhammad SAW and us:The Prophet SAW as soon as he made the impulsive decision
without verifying the information, Allah SWT showed his displeasure
immediately. Allah SWT through the above verse, designates the rule of
verifying any information received especially through people of less certainty
and doubtful in character. Furthermore instant and impulsive judgements might
harm or grieved someone and such unintentional accusations cannot be erased
even with great apology (sorrow).
Reality in Life
1.In most cases, we jump to
conclusions easily and make decisions hastily. This is actually good practice
as it shows that we are a decisive person. However, inaccurate information can be
deceiving and could result in us making the wrong decision.
2.As a student, we get excited when
being offered a place to study in the higher learning institution after
obtaining good grades in the SPM, STPM or Matriculation studies. Obviously the situation warrants us to jump with joy and be
excited. In most instances however, students make the wrong choices as to their
field of study or major. We are easily influenced by our friends in deciding on
the major of study. Hence influenced by reasons given, we chose the recommended
field which is relatively considered easy to pass, i.e IT. However our parents
upon knowing the choice made insisted that we switched course to Medicine. True enough while we have a stable
job as a doctor in the government hospital, our friends who graduated in IT field have not been able
to obtain a stable employment. There is a
glut of IT graduates in the market. Desperate to earn a living, they
have to grab the first offer that came by eventhough it is only a clerical
position with a monthly salary of RM1,500 per month. The future seemed vague
and uncertain. More so if they are planning to get married.
3.A boss upon receiving unsolicited
comments from the sycophant, decided to cold storage an employee. The said
employee was disappointed. As a result, the affected employee started to
badmouth the boss and the sycophant who gave the incorrect information. News
and gossip spread like wildfire in an office environment. Upon hearing the
news, the morale, productivity and efficiency of the employees in the
organization started declining. The organization then turned out to be the last
choice of place of employment for the
employees.
4.An entrepreneur invested thousands
of ringgit in a project which according to his partner is profitable. Within
three months he will be receiving the returns on his investment. With the continuous
good returns, the entrepreneur and his partner will soon be millionaires. The
entrepreneur having full faith in his partner, took out all his savings in ASB
and Tabung Haji to invest in the project. After three months he lost all his
investment. His partner is nowhere to be seen and cannot be contacted.
5.In the corporate sector, a wrong
decision made by a conglomerate with MNC status can result in losses reaching up
to billions of ringgit. The feasibility study is inclined towards the CEO or
MD’s preference than the actual situation. The data and information may be the
same but the analysis, interpretation and presentation of the data may differ
from one analyst to another. The Analyst favored by the CEO will make
recommendations based on his insight and knowledge of the boss’s preference.
The analysis, conclusion and recommendations are no longer independent and
transparent. Certain information are not highlighted and may even be
camouflaged. The Board’s decision is influenced by the explanation, acceptable
and logical reasoning reasoning presented by the CEO.
6. After three years of operations,
the accumulated losses reached 1 billion ringgit. The External Auditors from the big 4
appointed by the Audit Committee then carried out the forensic investigation.
The External Auditors noted that the information presented to the Board was
inaccurate, misrepresented and manipulated by the CEO’s favoured Analyst. The
Analyst’s employment was terminated but the CEO was sparred. The Analyst was
re-employed by the CEO in his nominee’s company within the same sector. Eventhough there were elements of
conflict of interest, it cannot be proven. Though it can be treated as daylight
robbery but the inability to establish proof, the CEO was sparred.
7.These are some examples as to how
wrong decisions were made due to inaccurate, manipulated and misinterpreted
data and information. The same scenario is happening in other fields such as
politics, daily lives, marriages, sight-seeing, purchasing a house etc. The
wrong decisions made in politics can result in disunity among the races. The
wrong decision in choosing a life partner can result in break-up of marriages.
Tips
1.The
best decision is the decision that is respected and beneficial to the
stakeholders. Such a decision can only be arrived at after thorough and
transparent research on the data and information obtained. The more independent
and transparent the manner with which the analysis, interpretations and
recommendations are made, the more accurate and fair decisions can be made.
2.
The above Al Quranic verse is a clear indication of the need to be trustworthy,
transparent and responsible in our leadership and management. The western
managers created the concept of accountability, responsibility, transparency
and corporate governance. The teachings of Islam through Al-Quran and Al-Hadith
laid clear and comprehensive foundation in management relying solely on the
word “AMANAH”. “AMANAH” is the benchmark
and the number one KPI for the Muslims.
3.
By being “AMANAH” we can shoulder any responsibility given in a complete manner
and with Allah SWT’s blessings. Our decisions will be more accurate, fair and
accepted. These are the kind of decisions that are meaningful, suitable and
correct for the particular circumstances. Decisions that do not brought any
guilty consciousness to us.
4.
Any decisions made intentionally based on unverified information may pleased us
and make us looked great. Due to the
hasty decision made, it could happen
that we will endure the most regretful moments and the memory remained forever
in our life .We must remember that as a result of our wrong decision, other parties might be
affected and are suffering. It will haunt us throughout our lives. Only we know
whether we are lying or telling the truth. We can deceived the world but we
cannot deceived ourselves and Allah SWT. In the hereafter we are answerable and
accountable to the parties that has suffered as a result of our action.
5.Therefore
in order not to make the wrong decision, we need to thoroughly verified the information at hand. We need to have an
open mind, think big dream high and have a strong heart. Remind ourselves to
always uphold the truth and distanced ourselves from intentionally causing hurt
and grievance to others who might suffer as a result of our decision.
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