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Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Conflict: Natural Feature of Islamic Institutions?

List of works are await before me to follow-up, as a result of annual meeting of a high learning institute's committee, at the beginning of February. This meeting is considered regular (and ordinary) in a such high learning institution (Sekolah Tinggi Haji Agus Salim), and intended to be so by this institute. It was the first meeting, attended by all elements: lecturers, institute's committee and board members of its oversight institution (Haji Agus Salim Foundation).

The meeting itself was held in a high-land resort in West Java (centainly a quite cold compared to our own place in Bekasi, near Jakarta). However, many times meeting situation turns wild, and hot debates among the participants became very often. It was considered successful, anyway, but many issues left unsolved, especially financial matter.

Some participants are unsatisfied with performance of oversight body members, who frequently make distortions in the system. Recently some members took intiative to call committee chairman to clarify some issues regarding measures taken by him. The measures include questioning some odd financial transactions done by officer who has close link to those members. This call was protested by many since board chairman also did not fully approve such action.

Other comment deserving attention is that the foundation board (Haji Agus Salim Foundation) does not have communication system, so that no track can be traced historically or financially. Although there are claims that members of the board already had had countless contributions, such statements are doubtful since there is no literal documents published, at least for internal purpose. What already happens next is what anybody can guess: prolonged debates based on the capability of each rethoric argument, not on data or documents.

What happened to Yayasan Agus Salim is what oftenly occurs in Islamic institutions. In other words, Islamic institutions always lack of written documents, all deeds are assumed by good intention and mutual trusts among the board. When a case involving trust-breaking arouse among them, then a mutual blame occurs as a consequence.


Continued..

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