Considering that Prophet Muhammad’s message was to reform the ethics of human beings at a time of commercial exploitation and ignorance of some fundamental human rights the religion of Islam is ever relevant to our contemporary situation of recession banking crisis consumer materialism and self-interest. Very few books tend to explore the ethics of the Islamic economical system and its practical relevance to current commercial and business situations.
This case study briefly explains the nature of the Islamic economic system and then proceeds to deal with three scenarios (based on real-life situations) where a human being’s self interest overtook his/her moral duty to the economy and government. These scenarios which stem from the United Kingdom are the Government Expenses scandal the issue of using interest (riba) in the economy and the Cash for Honours scandal. The aim of the case study is to show ways in which Islamic ethical theory can be contextualised in economic environments and combat the attitude of self-interest and exploitation.
