Premiums for the Prophet’s birthday exacerbate the suffering of service employees
English - Thursday 07 October 2021 الساعة 06:26 pm
Sana'a, NewsYemen:
The decision of the leader of the Houthi militia, Muhammad Ali al-Houthi, to deduct a one-day premium from the salaries of civil servants, in celebration of the Prophet’s birthday, sparked widespread controversy and stinging ridicule among the public streets in Sanaa and the neighboring governorates.
While the leader Muhammad al-Houthi went to seek the assistance of the interpretation of the verse: “Say if your fathers and your sons … etc.)” to support the correctness of his decision, claiming that “the Messenger is more beloved to them than the payment, the salary, and the trade,” the reactions of a wide segment of citizens came in Sana'a is unanimously agreed that celebrating the birth of the Prophet (Muhammad) is by following his life and applying his teachings, and not by forcing people to pay royalties and to hang fabrics and lights.
Ali al-Nahmi - a vegetable seller in Sana'a - believes that loving the Prophet is a condition of faith, and it is sufficient to simply celebrate his birth, a spiritual celebration, not by appearances and fabrics.
He said: "The Prophet will not blame you if you celebrate his birthday simply, but the low-income employee will blame you for depriving his children of a piece of cloth to cover them or a morsel to satisfy their hunger."
He added: "If Muhammad al-Houthi was able to pay a portion of his salary for the Prophet's birthday, then others cannot. The salaries are non-existent first, and the deduction from salaries has nothing to do with the love of the Prophet and God does not burden a soul beyond its capacity."
In a meeting chaired by the Houthi leader, Muhammad Ali al-Houthi, on Saturday, October 2, the Houthi militia had approved a one-day premium deduction for all civil servants to establish what it said was a “hospital or medical city in the name of the Greatest Messenger in the capital and governorates.” coinciding with the occasion of the Prophet's birthday.
Hammoud al-Hamdani, a shop owner in Sana'a, believes that deducting a portion of employees' salaries, compulsory donations and imposing royalties on people to celebrate the Prophet's birthday, it is assumed that such practices will be postponed until the war stops, "after the employee receives salaries, incentives and allowances, there is no problem in the matter."
Proposing in such exceptional circumstances that the state provide subsidies to employees, as the employee faces great burdens, and it is not logical to deduct a day’s installment from his salary, which he is already deprived of.”
He said: "Employees receive only half the salary on the days of Eid, and in this way they will be apprehensive about the occasion of the Prophet's birthday itself."
For his part, Ali Al-Ashwal - a government employee - suggests deducting premiums on economic units, saying that their resources were not affected by the war, but rather increased, such as "the Tax Authority, the Telecommunications Corporation, the Customs Authority and other economic units that give their employees all their dues in terms of salaries, incentives, allowances and bonuses," noting to that some economic units "do not find operating expenses."
Theft of rights in the name of the Prophet
Saleh al-Walidy - a university student - believes that the Prophet does not need what he described as political hypocrisy and blackmailing people in the name of his birth. He said: "We love the Messenger since our childhood, and we are not new to Islam to learn to love the Messenger," urging the Houthi militia to abandon the practice of "imposting, lying, slandering and stealing the rights of employees in the name of the Prophet," and added: "Love the Messenger by applying his Sunnah and imitating him, not by deceiving people and stealing money and rights."
Ali Muhammad al-Houthi, Nashwan Saif, a taxi driver, suggested establishing a hospital from the money looted from tax, customs, and improvement revenues, sales of oil derivatives, and from the balances of buildings, villas, cars, and transportation expenses of the group’s leaders.
Addressing al-Houthi, he said: "They loot salaries and pay employees a small percentage of their salaries that is not enough to provide for their basic needs, and on top of this, they deduct sums from the small percentage they receive in the name of the Prophet's love," stressing in this context. “The Messenger of God is innocent of your deeds.”
