Wealth from government

Question:

Asalamu alaikum. I have another question. It is about halal and haram wealth. I am from Nigeria. I have a Nigerian fiance who lives in the USA. I want to quit the relationship because of my doubts concerning his source of wealth. The Prophet h as promised us that whoever gives up something for the sake of Allah, Allah will give him something better. Normally in Nigeria, the presidents, governors, senators and other holders of positions in office are corrupt and embezzle government money which is the right of the millions of citizens of Nigeria. They a re also involved in bribery and corruption. They usually take the stolen money a nd invest in foreign countries like USA, switzerland etc. Allah ordered us not to consume each other's money unjustly. My fiance is a businessman who collects t he money of these governors and conduct business for them in the USA and give t hem profits while getting his share of the money. And it is popularly known that all the governors are thieves. Allah says we should help each other in good and righteousness and not help towards sin and transgression. And I think he is helping them keep away the people's money from our country and investing it in t he USA which is oppression. I am thinking that my fiance's wealth is Haram because he invests Haram money for them and if I happened to get married to him h e will feed me and my children with Haram which is not good for the moral character of the children and is a hindrance for the acceptance of deeds and duas.

Am I right that his wealth is Haram because he fronts for thieves and should I give up the relationship with the hope that Allah will give me a better companion who earns pure halal income? Or should I urge him to give up what he is doing and s eek a purer means of rizq. If he so happens to give up, what about the wealth t hat he has already amassed before. I think he was ignorant of the fact that it is Haram to work with stolen money when he started out and still doesn't really know the seriousness of the issue. So what about the money he has already gained? Allah talks about those who do bad out of ignorance (man ya'mal su'an b ijahalatin thumma taba min ba'dihi wa aslaha...) Answer: ﺑﺴﻢ اﷲ اﻟﺮﺣﻤﻦ اﻟﺮﺣﯿﻢ In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful To claim the majority of a government’s wealth is from prohibited sources is based upon assumption. A person will need solid evidence to substantiate such a claim, hence we cannot make a blanket statement that all income which is received from the government is haram (prohibited). On the other hand, if a person knows with certainty that the income which he is receiving has been embezzled or obtained through another haram means, then that income would be impermissible. Thus, your fiance is advised to ensure that his source of income is halal (permissible). If after doing his due diligence he is certain that the source of income or the majority of it is from permissible sources, and he is not doing anything that entails assisting in sin, he may continue his job. In addition, bear in mind that merely doing business on behalf of a government does not necessitate assisting in sin on the condition it is a halal (permissible) business.

In conclusion, do not accuse him of having haram wealth without any concrete evidence. He is obliged to investigate the source of his income.

After research, if he comes to know that his wealth is haram, then he may give it away in charity to those eligible for receiving zakat without having the intention of attaining reward. Furthermore, if you see that he is a pious man who follows the Quran and Sunnah, then there is no need to cancel the marriage. Nevertheless, if a man knowingly earns haram, then marriage should be avoided with such a person.

(Imdadul Ahkam: v. 3, p. 525-526; Kitabul Nawazil: v. 12, p. 502; Aap Key Masaail Aur Unka Hal: v. 7, p. 359)

Only Allah knows best

Written by Maulana Mohammad Ahsan Osmani Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah Darul Ifta Birmingham