Social Responsibility: The Absent Obligation
Muawad Mustafa Rashid
Social responsibility means that individuals and companies have a duty to act upon that is in the best interests of their environment and society as a whole.
The crux of this theory is to enact policies that promote an ethical balance between the dual mandates of striving for profitability and benefiting society as a whole.
It is an ethical theory in which individuals are accountable for fulfilling their civic duty, and the actions of an individual must benefit the whole of society. In this way, there must be a balance between economic growth and the welfare of society and the environment.
We always hear politicians, intellectuals, activists, civil society organizations speak out to the media outlets on the concepts of social responsibility.
On the other hand, the government calls on the companies to commit to social responsibility, but unfortunately the latter give a deaf ear to those calls.
Morality behind the Concept
It goes without saying that social responsibility is an obliged item according to which the companies are supposed to provide services –doesn’t matter how– to the communities; but during the era of the ousted regime, the government used to take the funds allocated by the companies for social responsibility to utilize it for other purposes.
In general, the concept of the social responsibility is deeper than that because – as mentioned above – it aims at promoting ethical balance between the dual mandates of striving for profitability and benefiting society as a whole.
Social responsibility stems from the feeling of the individuals of the community towards themselves and towards others.
If individuals well understand the social responsibility concepts, then companies will commit to it.
Nowadays, social responsibility is an absent obligatory in our communities and all the confusion and turmoil we are witnessing is due to our lacking the commitment to our ethical responsibilities towards ourselves and towards to our nation as well.
According to psychologists, social responsibility reflects the psychological maturity of the individual who shoulders social responsibility and has the readiness to contribute his share in achieving the welfare of the community with the feeling that he owes it.
But the reality we are living in reflects a clear image of acute psychological immaturity which we are suffering of, especially that of political leaders, since our independence.
The images of the social responsibility of individuals start from the personal conduct towards others and the nation e.g. environment sanitation, respect of law, avoiding extravagance of all kinds, giving hand to others etc…
All which contribute in supporting the community.
Perks
If every individual is committed to social responsibility, it will become part of his culture and convictions. This will appear in the actions and projects of the people who run profitable companies.
It is high time for the transitional governments to work out a plan aiming at empowering the culture of social responsibility in the community, hence achieving stability and providing vocational training to the new generations.
Our officials should provide all possible support to the youth to bring them out from the spiral of despair, unemployment, and frustration which are the major approach to chaos and irresponsibility.
The government must enforce social responsibility items through directing the profitable companies to allocate funds for social responsibility to help make projects that have an impact on the present and in the future; such as contributing in boosting the main infrastructure of schools, hospitals productive sectors, etc…
In short, social responsibility is obligatory for all citizens; who should commit to it fully, as its impact is immediate and clear on the lives of the people.
