Ali Ibn Abi Talib - Volume 1 of 2

'Ali ibn Abi Tilib 61 1
close to you, and so that he can feel safe and secure with you from the
aggression of people close to
From this text we leam the following:
(a) The governor is responsible for appointing judges
(b) The governor is required to adhere to strict standards in
selectiug judges.
(c) The governor must take care of judges completely, so that
they do not feel that they need anything from others.297
2.3.7. Financial administration
The sources for financial expenditure in the province were
zaka, charity, booty (ghaneemah and fay'), land tax revenues and
customs duties. These funds were to he placed in the public treasury,
which was the place where the Muslim public funds were collected.
There was a worker in charge of the public treasury who recorded all
the wealth that came into it and all expenditure that went out of it.
The public treasury played an important role in decentralised
administration. The wealth that was collected was spent first on the
province's affairs, such as employees, workers, judges, the needy,
development and so on. Whatever was left over was sent to the
capital of the caliphate. The public treasury was regarded as the heart
of the province which circulated blood through the veins of the
different departments.298
Amir al-Mu'mineen 'Ali (&) said: "Look at what you have
collected of the wealth of Allah, and spend it on those with you who
are in need and hungry."z99 As we have mentioned, part of this
wealth came from the land tax, which is a levy that was imposed on
cultivated land; it was the main source for paying salaries of those
employed by the province. Whatever was left over of that was to be
distributed to the poor and needy. Amir al-Mu'mineen 'Ali said: "AU