The Prophet (SAW) said: “The people will soon summon one another to attack you as people when eating invite others to share their dish.” Abu Dawood

Paul Wolfowitz one of the grand architects of the loot and plunder of Iraq has announced his resignation as President of the World Bank. Not content with having been directly responsible for the cruel, heartless destruction of an entire nation, Wolfowitz moved on to become President of the World Bank.

Wolfowitz was forced to resign from his position amid accusations of corruption. The accusation was that under his orders his girlfriend Shaha Riza was given an unjustified pay increase from $132600 to a current wage of $193000. Some commentators claim that this was not the real reason for the pressure applied on Wolfowitz to resign, rather it was a political coup to remove his type of US political influence in the World Bank.

Regardless of the competition over influence by rival factions linked to Europe or the US, Muslims are becoming increasingly aware about the inherently corrupt nature of such international institutions. There is the ridiculous situation that the head of the World Bank is always an American and the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) a European.  It is clear that such institutions are mere pawns used for the interests of capitalist nations like the US, Britain and France.

The World Bank is no different and it is ironic that its President should be forced out for being corrupt when the entire organisation relies on corrupted elites in the Muslim world and beyond for it to function. Muslims are no longer easily fooled by terms like ‘Aid’, ‘Structural Adjustment’ and ‘Poverty Reduction’.

The truth is that World Bank is an institution run by the wealthy capitalist nations. It allows developing countries to be exploited by corporations and other capitalists. The interests of the people of these developing countries are not served and they are exploited. The only ones that benefit in such nations are corrupt officials in finance ministries that sign agreements that will plunge their people into a life of misery.

Examples of World Bank policies to ‘help’ poor countries pay back loans include demanding that governments cut spending on social welfare, cutting subsidies on basic foods and to allow privatisation of state controlled assets. The results of these demands on the poor of these nations, both Muslim and Non Muslim, are increased poverty and desperation. As a result of these demands poor nations cannot spend adequately on healthcare, provide proper education, or even allow the provision of basics like wheat to be sold at an affordable price. The industries that are set up in these countries often find themselves in foreign ownership benefiting the West and not the nations in which they are based.

The reason why the world finds itself in this situation is because the rule and the justice of Islam are absent. The world today is led by ruthless capitalist nations that care only for enriching their elites. By contrast, the Khilafah state would endeavour to truly eradicate poverty, by meeting the basic needs of its individuals and not set up institutions that would be tools in the hands of the greedy capitalists spreading misery, death and disease to mankind.

The Muslim world is well aware of the impact of the words of Muhammad (saw) when he said, “ Verily Imam is the Shield”. The Khilafah state would stop the colonial nations treating the Muslim world as a dish of food to compete over. Indeed the Khilafah would protect the Ummah and her resources from the greed of those who wish her harm.

For a detailed refutation of the policies of the World Bank and IMF see:
‘IMF and World Bank: colonial tools to exploit the world’