What do we need to fix South Africa? Jobs? Education? Foreign investment? Competent and trustworthy leaders?
Listen to what Dr Imitiaaz Sooliman has to say on the matter: “We need four principles to fix this country, we don’t need money. We need spirituality, morality, values and ethics. You fix that, you fix the country.
“We’ll have a surplus of money overflowing because you’ll do things the right way, in an honest way, with integrity, and the moment you do that, in Islam we say, its barakah – blessing, bounties and abundance.”
When the Gift of the Givers founder speaks, Munier tends to listen. This is a man whose deeds speak far louder than words. Unlike... you know who.
Munier sat down and reflected on each of these four principles: spirituality, morality, values and ethics.
And how they can impact the life of not just an individual, but a community, even an entire nation.
What do they mean to you and your life?
We’ve just come out of a holy period where we observed Easter and the holy month of Ramadaan.
And in this lawless and (some say) god-forsaken country, we saw some of those beautiful qualities at work, blessing our communities.
We saw pastors, moulanas, churches, mosques, charities, good Samaritans, community workers and ordinary residents come together, pray together and pool their resources to feed poor families in their neighbourhoods.
It was heartening to see just how much caring and sharing there still is in these troubled times.
It showed once again that when the good people in our communities come together, anything is possible. Amazing things happen. Miracles.
The opposite is also true. When evil congregates, when the gangsters and drug dealers reign, they turn our communities into a living hell.
And they corrupt our youth, turning them away from the positive values they need to grow into decent, prosperous human beings.
Dr Sooliman had this to say, following the conviction of two Americans gangsters last week for the murder of Gift of the Givers volunteer Ameerodien Noordien.
“But we also pray for other children who have been caught up in gang groups to be shown and given an opportunity to live a righteous, better, cleaner life. For there is no life being involved in a gang.”
Following this holy period, Munier would like to see the spirit of goodwill, righteousness and unity continue to flourish in our communities.
May it nurture and inspire our youth to make the right decisions in life - to choose spirituality, morality, values and ethics.
taariq.halim@inl.co.za