Posted by: TheMajlis

SANHA’S LAMENT — Its Haraam Exorbitant Fees

IN VINDICATION OF its unjustified haraam fees, SANHA laments:

"The fees charged by SANHA have always been commensurate to services which are provided. SANHA is a non-profit organisation that levies licensing fees in lieu of services rendered to effectively investigate, supervise and monitor Halaal establishments.

It does not o­nly rely o­n donations to meet the salaries of its staff and inspectors who undertake regular inspections all over the country. Notwithstanding this, rumours surface regularly o­n the "exorbitant" fees charged by SANHA. Regrettably proof is never supplied and the charge remains as ‘hearsay’.

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"ATT: ALL CUSTOMERS

RE: WITHDRAWAL FROM SANHA

We wish to advise all our customers, that as from May 2002, we have decided to withdraw from our membership/certification with SANHA. This is due to a breakdown in negotiations over certification costs to carry the SANHA label/logo. At present, it costs us roughly R10,000 a year (certification and inspection charges) for SANHA membership, and as a business person yourself, you will understand that o­n a cost benefit analysis, this is a no-win situation as all our products are already HALAAL.

MAHOMED’S BUTCHERY, and our marketing agent, GOLDEN DELIGHTS BILTONG, Johannesburg, are both solely Muslim owned companies. In fact MAHOMED’S ABATTOIR is the o­nly Muslim owned Halaal government approved abattoir in the Free State.

MAHOMED’S BUTCHERY invites any member of the public to inspect its premises to satisfy themselves that we do comply with the SHARIAH ruling surrounding Halaal. Furthermore, it distresses us that in today’s times, Halaal has become a function of having to pay membership fees. We believe that Halaal certification is not a function dictated to by financial reward.

Should any member of the public wish to inspect our premises to satisfy themselves that we are indeed Halaal, please feel free to contact the above numbers.

HAJEE A.M.MAHOMED

P.O. Box 302 Clocolan

9735.—40 Roenzi Street, Clocolan

Tel. 051-9430540"

Before we comment o­n the haraam exorbitant fees, the following facts should be noted:

(1) Mahomed’s Butchery cancelled its membership with Sanha in account of the exorbitant R10,000

‘licence’ fee demanded.

(2) There was no breach of the Shariah’s halaal requirements. When the butchery withdrew and Sanha cancelled its ‘halaal’ certificate, did Sanha notify the community of the reason for the withdrawal of the certificate? If not, what are the cogent reasons for the silence?

When a confounded ‘halaal’ certificate is withdrawn, there is bound to be suspicion. The public at large will presume that the products of the establishment are no longer halaal. The monetary aspect and the exorbitant fees are unknown to the man in the street. If the matter is not adequately clarified, the impression of the products being haraam will most certainly be conveyed by the withdrawal of the certificate.

It was the incumbent duty of Sanha who had netted thousands of rands in the form of exorbitant and haraam fees from the butchery, to at least have had the common decency and the Islamic honour to notify the public of the correct reason for the withdrawal of the certificate.

On the contrary, Sanha opted for silence, thereby permitting a grossly erroneous perception to be created about the products of the Muslim butchery. In its attitude of silent slander, Sanha is grievously at fault for harming the reputation of a Muslim. But pecuniary interests dictate such attitudes.

The food products of a Muslim are deemed halaal by the Shariah. In the absence of strong indications, it has to be necessarily accepted that the food products of a Muslim are halaal. As such, a Muslim establishment is not at all in need of a silly ‘halaal’ certificate. The silliness of the haraam certificate acquires gravity when it is utilized to extract and usurp money.

(haraam ways).." .– (Qur’aan)

If evidence establishes that a Muslim trader deals in haraam food products, then it will be every Muslim’s right to expose the culprit. There is no need for the existence and withdrawal of a certificate for this purpose. In the absence of evidence, it is unlawful to cast aspersions o­n the integrity and reputation of any Muslim trader.

SANHA has embarked o­n an evil endeavour to monopolize ‘halaal’ proclamation for the sake of money. Commercialisation of halaal proclamation is indeed a lucrative ‘trade’, albeit a haraam o­ne. It promises earnings of hundreds of thousands of rands. It is therefore not at all surprising when fabricators of ‘halaal’ certificates are at each others throats, the o­ne attempting to knock out the other.

Both the MJC and SANHA ply the same haraam trade. Antagonism between them was therefore quite predictable. After all, it has been said: "Money is the root of all evil."

When money is pursued in ways not condoned by the Shariah, then the hell which lurks within the nafs of man breaks loose.

The commercialisation of the ‘halaal’ trade has brought irreparable spiritual damage to Muslims. The intense o­nslaught to rope in all the non-Muslim business establishments, and to sell them the haraam certificates is too juicy a carrot to relinquish, even if it means the ruin of the Imaan of the Muslim masses by feeding them carrion under a silly, haraam logo. The rivalry between these organisations plying this despicable trade in the name of the Deen is expected to intensify. The lure of money is too formidable and too enticing.

May Allah Ta’ala guide those who are mis-manipulating the Deen in this callous and haraam way for the acquisition of monetary gain. It is better for these chaps to scavenge, cut grass and wash the cars of people for a living, than to fill their bellies and nourish their bodies with money extracted from traders who regard these ‘licensing’ officers with venomous aversion, curse and wrath. They remind o­ne of the Banya moneylenders of India who like parasites suck the blood of their debtors.