Vision, Mission and Values
Introduction
Islamic International Medical College Trust (IIMCT) was established by its founding Managing Trustee, Major General Dr. Muhammad Zulfiqar Ali Khan in 1995. The Trust in 1996 established Islamic International Medical College, in 1998 the Islamic International College of Engineering, and in 2000 Riphah Institute of Informatics.
In 2002, with the grace of Allah s.w.t. Riphah International University got the charter from the Federal Government of Pakistan, with Maj. Gen. (R) Dr. Muhammad Zulfiqar Ali Khan as its Chancellor and Professor Dr. Anis Ahmad as the founding Vice-Chancellor.
The Trust and the University were established primarily to overcome the prevailing dichotomy in our country’s education system, which is based on a conflict between “religion” and “worldly education”. The secular education system enforced in the Subcontinent by colonialist rulers was designed to suit their administrative objectives. Although this system never denied the existence of God nor disallowed “religious” education, it placed a greater emphasis on the education of disciplines that had commercial value and reduced religious education to the knowledge of Ibadah or religious rituals. Consequently, the influence of religion, its universal values and desirable practices in mu‘amalat gradually faded. The intent of the Qur’an and the ideal prophetic role model (uswah al hasanah) was transformation of akhlaq, conduct and behavior in personal, social, economic, and political life.
The secular education system introduced by the British colonialists was designed to provide an administrative workforce for them. Unfortunately, after achieving independence from British imperialism, we did not change the education system. Naturally, it failed to produce graduates with ethical and moral commitment and behavior. Even after the emergence of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, education of Islam remained confined to the teaching of limited scoped subject of Islamiyat for a maximum of 2 credit hours in the overall period of four or more academic years of graduate programs.
Owing to this dichotomy, our education system could not provide youth with a comprehensive view of Islam as a complete code of life (nizam-e-hayat) that encompasses every aspect of human life. This has resulted in dualism in students’ personality and intellectual development. They believe and live in two worlds; a world of scientific knowledge, professionalism, and materiality, which helps them seek a job. The other world of “religion” is confined to a blind belief and barely enough knowledge about some ‘ibadat. This system could only produce graduates with an inherent conflict in life and a secular mind with a materialistic outlook towards life, often devoid of ethical considerations.
We at the IIMC Trust and Riphah firmly believe in the Islamic holistic worldview and holistic development of the personality of students, faculty, and supporting staff. We believe that nation-building is only possible when our youth develop a commitment to our national ideology i.e., Islamic ethical values, and translate them into their conduct and behavior as clearly stated by the Qua‘id: “What is that keeps the Muslims united, and what is the sheet anchor of the community. It is Islam. Everyone except those who are ignorant knows that the Qur’an is the general code of the Muslims. A religious, social, civil, commercial, military, judicial, criminal penal code. It regulates everything, from ceremonies of religion to those of daily life. It is a complete code regulating the whole Muslim society in every department of life, collectively and individually”.1
Nationhood, ummah, and millah in Islam are a matter of sharing and practicing universal ethical values of the Qur’an and the Sunnah. It rejects the idea of worshiping dust, trees, and mountains or geographic territory. Pakistani nationhood, in this context, is unique because it was born and realized before a territory was declared as Pakistan. Islam as our ideology is the basis of our nationhood, our development strategies, progress, and scientific advancement. This requires the integration of Islamic ethical values in our education, research, and development plans.
This document reflects the vision of late Gen Dr Zulfiqar Ali Khan, the present Chancellor, Mr. Hassan Muhammad Khan, and the founding team who established the institutions of IIMCT and Riphah as a movement to accomplish a sacred mission. It also conveys our vision and guiding principles to the future leadership of the University. These values have to be the basis of all our programs and development of the University, projects of the Trust, and welfare institutions linked with the University.
I have constantly reminded my colleagues that Riphah is more than an institution of higher learning. It is a movement for ethical, social change. Our teachers and students inshaAllah shall translate the dream of our elders in making Pakistan an ideal Islamic society and state, as declared by the Quai‘d on Feb. 1, 1943: “In Pakistan we shall have a state which will be run according to the principles of Islam. It will have its cultural, political, and economic structure based on the principles of Islam. The non-Muslims need not fear because of this, for fullest justice will be done to them, they will have their full cultural, religious, political, and economic rights safeguarded. In fact, they will be more protected than in the present-day system.”2
Professor Dr. Anis Ahmad
Founding Vice-Chancellor
March 23, 2020
Our Mission
Establishment of the state-of-the-art educational institutions with a focus on inculcating Islamic ethical values
Vision
- To lead in the development of holistic value-based research, development, education, and training programs;
- To establish at national and international levels state-of-the-art educational, research, and training institutions, in line with international best practices and with the integration of universal Islamic values and the ideology of Pakistan to produce dynamic and committed human beings;
- To develop and implement educational strategies, experiential learning, and outcome-based academic programs, teaching material, reports, surveys, and research material to enhance the quality of education and training in various disciplines in higher education;
- To play a leadership role at national and international levels in the production of ‘ilm al nafi‘ systematic reforms (islah), capacity building (tarbiyah), behavioral transformation (tazkiyah), creation of tolerance and forbearance (sabr, istiqamah) and innovative solutions (ijtihad) for social change with a pro-active approach (jihad); and
- Establish model institutions, particularly in healthcare, applied and social sciences, including Islamic thought, culture, and history to improve people’s quality of life.
Our Core Values
The Islamic value system draws its legitimacy from two universal realities: tawhid and ‘adl, or Allah’s unity, uniqueness, and attribute of fairness. For our convenience, we have selected six major values as the basis of our policies and practices. These are complemented by equally important behaviors prescribed by the Qur’an and the Sunnah for a socially responsible society and organization.
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