will not give me anything.” Imām (a.s.) replied, “Even if it happens so.”1
A glance at the teachings of Imām Ali (a.s.) in this respect shows that the tax organization and its agents are bound to win the people’s trust, and to observe Islamic morality and religious behavior, while they are trying to be alert and careful in safeguarding the Public Treasury and vigilantly learn about the problems of taxation.
7. Not Delaying the Distribution of Public Assets
Imām Ali (a.s.) never approved the blocking of public assets in the state’s treasure; he would rather try to deliver them to the needy immediately. Imām’s (a.s.) code of conduct indicates that he would not tolerate the delay of its distribution even for one night. He firmly believed that what rightly belonged to the people had to be delivered to them as soon as possible.
8. People’s Equal Enjoyment of Public Assets
The equal allocation of the public assets among all Muslims was one of the policies in the government of Imām Ali (a.s.). This was contrary to what had been practiced in the years previous to his reign and it was therefore very hard for the well off people and those that benefited from the government and were the influential of that time to accept it. In Imām’s view, the skin color of a Muslim, his tribe, ancestors and their social status did not make any difference in their portion of the public assets. Arabs and non-Arabs, the muhājirin (migrants) and the Ansār (supporters), black and white and even the freed slaves and their former masters were equally treated and all enjoyed equally from the public incomes.
9. Provision of Basic Needs of Life for all
The general trend of the economic policy of Imām Ali (a.s.) is to struggle against poverty and eradicate it from the Islamic society. His (a.s.) guidelines in this respect are very interesting and thought-provoking. He insists that the hunger and poverty of a group is