Mechanisms of Transcendent Governance in Combating Administrative Corruption from the Perspective of Imam Ali (AS) (Supervision)

Supervision is one of the just and effective mechanisms for ensuring the fair distribution of economic resources and safeguarding people’s rights from violations and the usurpation of citizens’ entitlements. It is also a key tool in combating administrative corruption in all its forms. The significance of this mechanism stems from its crucial role in achieving governmental objectives, particularly in promoting social and economic justice and fighting administrative corruption. Consequently, supervision holds a distinguished position in the thought of Imam Ali (AS) and was among his top priorities. This emphasis reflects his belief in its importance for establishing justice and restoring the people’s trust in governance. In this regard, he stated: “By God, if I find that something unjustly taken from public funds remains in someone’s possession, I will return it, even if it was used for marriage or purchased for slave women. Justice provides room and ease for everyone, while tyranny and oppression constrict life and make it even more unbearable for those who impose it.” (Nahj al-Balagha)
Based on the conscious and systematic supervisory measures of Imam Ali (AS), the following principles can be derived:
Strengthening employees’ self-motivation, leading to enhanced self-supervision, where a Muslim individual 1. feels that a constant observer is always present.
Selecting honest, trustworthy, and competent individuals to carry out supervisory responsibilities.2.
Ensuring the neutrality and independence of supervisory institutions so that they remain free from affiliation 3. with any political party or specific faction.
Improving employees’ living standards and providing them with a decent livelihood to prevent them 4. from coveting what citizens possess.
Enhancing the living conditions of those in supervisory roles to make bribery and undue influence more 5. difficult.

Keywords: Transcendent Governance, Imam Ali, Administrative Corruption, Supervision, Combating, Nahj Al-Balagha.