The bread hero of South Africa Imraan Mukuddam who took on the bread cartels making it more possible for the 40 million poor South Africans to buy bread cheaper pulled off another major feat as a consumer activist to improve halaal compliance standards. He is the one Muslim who most probably has the deepest respect and love for the Ulema and is certainly not anti establishment. His son learnt his Hifz in the company of the sons of the most senior Ulema of the MJC. What is amazing is that while exerting pressure he collaborated with MJC spin doctors and staged the progressve steps the MJC took to hold a press conference, agree to an ETV interview, hold a radio public question and answer session and a public meeting where it apologised. What is more amazing is that he got the support of Muslim activists and political leaders and councillors in the City of Cape Town Dr Wasfie Hassiem and Cllr Ganief Hendricks all from a broad spectrum of opinion supportive and hostile to some MJC policies.

At a pre khutba talk at the Strand mosque the town that is home to MJC Ulema who issues its fatwas he won the hearts of the Jamaa with the humble explanation of his role as a consumer activist. Joining him was Cllr Ganief Hendricks who laid down the AL JAMA-AH policy on halaal standards which comply with the 10 rules that apply to the institution of Thabah as set out by the most senior Mufti’s of the land. The local Imam Sheikh Nazeem read the MJC apology concluding the Juma-ah which must count as the most historical khutba’s ever in the Strand following trends in Tunisia and Egypt showing people power.

With the apology in place and the promised MJC 4 point plan including setting up a body of experts to monitor MJC Halaal processes Imraan and Cllr Ganief asked the Jamaa to give the MJC the opportunity to fix the lapses of the MJC Halaal Trust. There was now no reason to continue to put more pressure on the MJC.

Just like halaal certifying bodies fail to work together so will the captains of the Muslim meat and chicken industry to resolve the crisis arising out of the Orion Pork scandal says Cllr Ganief Hendricks Party leader of AL JAMA-AH. Protecting their turf and their business interests counts more than the holy institution of Thabah and shariah slaughtering laws.

Leading Muslim butchers feel that their responsiblity ends when they pay their registration fees with one or more halaal certifying authorities and then for other services rendered. Damage to the repution of any halaal certifying authority does not concern them.

While the meeting set down in a City of Cape Town Boardroom in Paul Sauer Building could not take place as planned over a period of six weeks by City secretarial staff Cllr Hendricks moved to get the information he wanted. Butchers made themselves available for telephonic interviews on the day and he had to cut short some of the interviews to accommodate other butchers. When a butcher heard the collective meeting of butchers was no longer on the cards they met the Councillor on a one on one basis. Busy Corner Meat Wholesalers owners on hearing their rivals were not attending at the last minute asked for an hour postponement and then for a time next week. They eventually agreed to a meeting at their premises in the farmlands of Lansdowne later the afternoon which took place and invited a major chicken wholesaler Farm Fresh to the meeting. Farm Fresh complained that a dozen other interest groups were doing the same thing and were indifferent to concerns raised as were others at the meeting. They felt the halaal certifying authority must alone take responsibilty but will stand with them. They however did not mind taking them on overseas visits to increase the number of suppliers of cheap halaal certified meat.

None of the butchers felt their brand was damaged by the scandals. Their turnover was also not affected indicating while there was an uproar Muslims continued to buy from them and did not even bother to question them on their halaal status. Busy Corner continued to move nearly 200 tons of meat and poor Muslims continued to buy imported cheap meat and chicken.

The Councillor extended a further invite to diving and ducking butchers like Shoukets, Dawoods Butchery and their suppliers and Excellent Meat Market and others to meet with him so that the Party’s voters and the Muslim public can know whether they ever bought meat and chicken from Orion Cold Storage and sold it to the hundreds of butchers Muslims buy from and whether they sold imported meat and chicken and whether they are prepared to take full responsibilty for halaal compliance.

Some of the responses of the Dhansay owners of Busy Corner gave some hope for the future. Cllr Ganief Hendricks handed the butchers with a copy of the Party’s halaal standards and asked them to heed Mufti A.K. Hoosains fatwa that imported meat and chicken should be banned.

MUSLIM MEAT WHOLESALERS:

HALAAL CERTIFIERS:

MUSLIM BUTCHERS:

SUPPORT FOR ISLAMIC PARTIES GROWING

Party Leader Ganief Hendricks expresed his satisfaction with the outcome as this was an apartheid ward during the tricameral parliament which was detested by Muslim activists as it excluded Africans. After the new dispensation a Tricameral stalwart won the ward. The reduction of the votes by over 50% for the DA and the ANC which is the home of tricameral sell – outs is a welcome sign of change. The ward continues to be run into the ground with it now getting R100 000 out of a budget of nearly a R100m for the surrounding affluent areas in its subcouncil. Lavender Hill is the most gang infested and dirtiest area in the City of Cape Town.

Party leader and campaign manager Ganief Hendricks is upbeat about the Party’s prospects to increase its support tenfold after wrapping up an intensive campaign for Muslim support in the polls.Voters have realised that the DA and before them the ANC cannot deliver and even clean their streets properly. The drug trade has flourished since the DA put in place a negotiated a ceasefire between rival gangs. Voters want change as their life prospects are so bad they want a military township. The broader community supports this position.

In the 2011 municipal elections Muslim voters gave the DA a landslide 86% victory and said a definate no to the ANC. This is set to change in the by-election to be held on Wednesday 18 January 2012 in Lavender Hill, Steenberg and Retreat. AL JAMA-AH’S ward candidate is Mugammad Yasien Abderoef.