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