In less than a week, Muslims around the world will begin to fulfill the rite of the fast of the Holy Month of Ramadan, the fourth pillar of Islam. This is a sacred time of the year and Muslims observe it with great reverence.
Many citizens are currently complaining of the hike in prices of food commodities as the economic crisis hits home. The cost of basic food items like rice, oil, sugar has increased tremendously in the past few months.
Many people fear that when Ramadan comes these items will increase again making it even more difficult for poor people to put food on the table. It has almost become an established tradition that every year the cost of sugar in particular increases when Ramadan comes.
As the majority of the people of this country are Muslims, one would have thought that the businesspeople, most of whom are Muslims, will have empathy for the poor and try to make sure that the cost of these commodities is not beyond the means of the general body of Muslims.
It is understood that certain prices are dictated by world market but there are many that are artificially calculated to maximize profit making. These are the ones the businesspeople should endeavor to reduce so as to make it easier for the public.
One of the major lessons that Ramadan seeks to inculcate in the believers is fellow feeling and mutual brotherhood. Therefore in order to attain maximum blessings from this month, a business man or woman should do whatever they can to make life easier for his or her fellow Muslims.
It is hoped that this time around, the business community will try to make life a little easier for the people of the country.
