MLM and Muslims

MLM and Muslims

From Bisnis Indonesia

The statement by Din Syamsudin, a public figure and a member
of the Indonesian Ulemas Council, that "the multi-level marketing
(MLM) business is forbidden to Muslims" has caused a me a great
deal of concern. We must all learn more about multi-level
marketing to avoid making any hasty judgments.

Many people have been deceived by the enticing promises made
by some companies purportedly in the MLM business. These people
are asked to deposit some money in a bank account and not to sell
anything. Then they are asked to wait for several days and voila,
they will pocket hundreds of thousands of rupiah, or even
millions of rupiah. This is what we call a money game, not MLM.
And, strangely, many of those who have been deceived are highly
educated people.

A real MLM business is different. If you want to succeed, you
have to work hard by selling products, recruiting other people
and assuming the responsibility to teach the people you recruited
so that you can be successful together. Clearly, MLM is not the
same as a money-multiplying game disguised as MLM. In the MLM
business, those who succeed are not the first comers but those
that persevere and are persistent and hard working.

We should not judge something permitted to Muslims as being
forbidden to Muslims, and vice versa. We all have to account to
God for our deeds, including our words, in this world.

ANDY SUBANDONO

Sidoarjo, East Java