THE DEFECT OF MAINSTREAM ISLAMIC ECONOMICS-ITS ASSUMPTIONS

VISITING PROFESSORSHIP TASKS AT UNISZA COMPLETED

The banner announcing my Visiting Professorship programmes

Alhamdulillah, my tasks during the second trip as a Visiting Professor at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA) in Kuala Terengganu has completed successfully yesterday. I was at UniSZA from 11st till 15th March 2012, fulfilling the scheduled programmes consisting of Intellectual, Graduate, Research and Writing Discourses, plus consultancies with lecturers, fellows, and graduate students of the Faculty of Business Management and Accounting.

In the Intellectual Discourse I talked on the "Decolonising the University - In Search of an Option". I stressed on the need to liberate ourselves from exogenous ideological underpinnings of the colonisers, and construct our universities from within our own indigenous ideological paradigm and belief. In the Research Discourse on "Islamic Marketing - In Search of Its Meaning", I explore the questions relating to the construction of the meaning of Islamic marketing, the contemporary search for and the state of the Islamic marketing. In the Writing Discourse on the "Producing Article for High Impact Journal", I attempted an understanding of the High Impact Factor journals and laying out strategies for publications in them.

For the Graduate Discourse, I sat as an external assesor for five graduate proposal defences, entitled "Evaluating the Effect of the Government Business Support Services and the Moderating Effect of Entrepreneurial Orientation on Malay SME's Performance in Malaysia" by Mohd Nor Hakimin bin Yusoff (Phd), "Abdandoned Housing Projects in Terengganu: Causes, Effects and Solution from Blue Ocean Strategy Perspective" by Mohd Hasyim bin Hj Mumin (MA), "The Determinants of Bank Margin and their Effect on Bank Diversification: A Comparison Between Islamic and Conventional Banks in Malaysia" by Ahmad Risyamsyi Abdul Razak (MA), "Penggunaan Berhierarki Berteraskan Islam" by Basri bin Abd. Ghani (PhD), and "The Determinants of Intention to Leave Job Among Muslim Workers: A Case of Private Sector in Selangor" by Suchi binti Hassan (PhD).

Listening to PhD proposal defence

Apart from the above activities, I also have the opportunity to meet and discuss with the lecturers, fellows and graduates of the Faculty of Business Management and Accounting, regarding their teachings, researches and studies, in consultancy programmes with them. All the programmes were joyful and fruitful indeed, InshaAllah.

Consultancy with one of the four groups of lecturers, fellows, and graduate students

Now I am in my hometown, Besut, after departing from Kuala Terengganu this morning, on my way home to Penang.

Listening to welcoming speech by the Dean of the Faculty of Business Management and Accounting, Associate Professor Dr Ahmad Shukri bin Yazid

Attending a lecture by Dr Selvamalar Ayadurai on Dilemma of Supervisor vs Supervisee: Issues and Challenges, as one of the two other programmes organised during my visit

Another programme during my visit, a talk on Dos and Don'ts for the Best Thesis by Dr Fadzila Azni Ahmad

Receiving a gift from the Dean, Associate Professor Dr Ahmad Shukri Yazid

The participants during the last day of my visit

ON SAFAR AGAIN

Filling petrol at Semanggol R&R

Today, on 10th March 2012, I am on safar again. This time to Kuala Terengganu via Kuala Lumpur and Kuantan. Together with my wife and children Taariq and Ummu, we departed our home yesterday after the Friday prayer in two cars. The first is my car driven by me and the second is Akif's car, driven by Taariq. Arrived at my daughter's house in Nilai at about 8.30pm last night.

Today, we are on the road again to Kuala Terengganu, but stopped over at various places. The first at Taman Melawati  to receive the layout of my book entitled Ways to Zakat Transformation from Shaikh Saefuddin of Yayasan Ilmu. The book is to be published by the Yayasan this year, InshaAllah. The second at my brother's house in Gombak to visit him recovering from his illness. The third at Kuantan, to deliver to Akif his car he is longing for.

We reached Primula Hotel in Kuala Terengganu a little later than maghrib, Alhamdulillah. I will be here till Friday 16th March 2012, InshaAllah, to fulfill some programmes at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA) as a Visiting Professor.

With Shaikh Saefuddin of Yayasan Ilmu at Melawati

With Akif (left) in Kuantan, in front of his car

ALLAH HAS GIVEN AKIF A CAR

Alhamdulillah, Allah SWT has given Akif the type of car that he wanted. It is a Waja, but is equipped with body kits and crystal white paint. I told him that this is his basic need and should only be used for the sake of Allah SWT. He understand it well as is expressed in his blog.

The car will be brought to him at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) Kuantan campus on Saturday 10th March, InshaAllah, on my way to Terengganu. He has got the permission from the IIUM authority to use the car in the campus, subsequent to his motorcycle accident recently. Alhamdulillah.

In overcoming the IIUM transport problem by this car, I hope Akif could continue to be in the Dean's list as before, or even with higher CGPA, InshaAllah. I trust that Akif is striving for this, although Mathematics is not his choice of specialization. The Physical Sciences that he is interested in is not offered by the IIUM, as MQA has not approved it. So he was told by the IIUM authority in Kuantan.

 

MY LATEST WRITING - MILENIA MUSLIM, MARCH 2012

A LITTLE PERSONAL NOTE

R-L: Taariq, Afirah and Akif

Just a little personal note on my children.

Few days before I left for Vancouver the other day, my son Akif at International Islamic University Malaysia Kuantan campus, has a little motorcycle accident. He has to borrow the motorbyke from his friend and rode it to his residence as the University's bus will only come at 1630 while his lecture has finished at 1300. Alhamdulillah he only suffered minor injuries, but his friend who was together with him broke one of his shoulder bones and was warded for more than a week. Akif promised not to ride a motorbyke anymore, as his mum and myself always advice him so. In consequence, he got a green light from the University authority to have a car in the campus. The University's Security Chief was kind enough to find out that Akif deserves to have such a permission as his University's residence is outside the campus, at IM2. We will send his car in about two weeks time, InshaAllah, on my way to Terengganu.

When I was away in Vancouver, my younger son Taariq has another incident relating to the car. A motorbyke rode by a youngster ramped into the door of my wife's car driven by Taariq while parking at the Taman Tun Saadon market. The boy fall down, injuring his foot. In minutes, a gang of the boy's brother came, the brother himself with a stick. They argued for money and Taariq gave RM100 to settle it all and for once. Alhamdulillah, Taariq has learned something out of the incident, at least in the arts of settling a conflict and in reserving his martial arts skills by viewing such an incident as a not worthwhile fight.

When I was away in Vancouver too, my elder daughter Afirah at Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia found the engine of her car overheating after coming home from her lecture, due to the lack of water in the radiator. She has to deal with it with her housemates, before an elder Indian came to teach her how to solve the problem. She has a wonderful lesson on the day, at least in getting to know a little bit about her car. Before this, like many other lady drivers, she knows how to use the car but does not exactly know how to maintain it. Moreover, she was too busy with her study and does not have enough time to look after the car. For that, I believe, Allah SWT took a little bit of her time to bestow her with a little knowledge about the car.

The three news reached me with a big takbir and Alhamdulillah. I was convinced that all the three children have been given direct lessons by Allah SWT accordingly - on their personal transportation - which would become one of the basic needs in their daily life, today and time to come. Allah SWT taught Afirah about the car itself, while for Akif and Taariq, Allah SWT taught them the arts of facing the challenges, physically and socially, pertaining to the culture of the Malaysian road usage. All these are indeed necessary for, and came at the right time to them as youngsters, to prepare for a more matured life, InshaAllah.

THE TASKS AHEAD

Though the Vancouver expedition is done, many other tasks, as usual, are in queue.

Inter alia, today 25th February is the deadline for my column article in the Milenia Muslim. Monday 27th would be my lecture for the graduate Islamic-based Development course for which its course outline should be ready by then. On Tuesday 27th too, there will be a presentation for a Research University Team (RUT) grant, in which I would be involved as an assessment panel.

Then on Tuesday 28th is the deadline for two articles, one for Islamic Project Management and the other one for Zakat in Southeast Asia projects. Monday 5th March is another deadline, this one a working paper for Islamic Marketing Project Workshop to be held in Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), Kuala Terengganu on 13rd March.

Monday 7th March would be a DBP-ISDEV Book Writing Workshop in which at least 3 chapters of my book entitled Principles of Islamic-based Development: Lectures on Basic Islamic Concepts (in Malay, co-authored with Masakaree Ardae) to be published by the DBP has to be presented. Thursday the 8th would be graduate proposal presentations, to be presented by ISDEV PhD students Radieah Mohd Nor and Deicy. And beginning 9th till 18th March I will be away in Kuala Lumpur and in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, to fulfill my post as a Visiting Professor at UniSZa in Kuala Terengganu.

Seem to be quite a tight schedule, though these do not include my other administrative tasks. But belief me, Alhamdulillah, they are all joyful tasks indeed.

Thank you Allah for Your trust in still giving me the tasks to uplift Your religion.