It is a condition for the empowering of a delegated assistant (Tafwid), that his empowerment encompasses two issues: The first being general responsibility, and the second being the representation. Accordingly, it is necessary for the Khalifah to say to him “I appoint you on my behalf as my deputy” or anything that is of a similar meaning from the wordings that encompass the general responsibility and representation. This authorisation enables the Khalifah to send the assistants to specific locations, or transfer them to other places and other work as is required as the assistant of the Khalifah, and without the need for a new authorisation since it all falls under the original empowerment.

The evidence for this is the reality of the work of the assistant, since the minister of Tafwid, or the assistant of Tafwid, who is the minister that the Khalifah appointed to carry the responsibility of ruling and authority with him. He is authorised to manage the affairs according to his opinion, and to conduct them according to his Ijtihad in agreement with the Shari’ah rules, and so the Khalifah empowers him with a general handling and representation. The representation here is a contract, and contracts are not correct unless they are contracted with a direct word, and so for this reason, it has been made a condition that empowering an assistant must occur with wording that indicates he is a representative in the place of the Khalifah and has the general control. Such as if the Khalifah said to him “I granted you what is upon me, to act on my behalf”, or says, “I made you a minister, and decided upon your representation” or something similar. In other words, it should encompass the general representation and general control by any manner it is understood, so it is imperative that the empowerment of the assistant is upon words that indicate the reality of the assistant, which is the representative of the Khalifah, and takes everything in terms of mandatory powers which the Khalifah has. In other words, it is imperative that the contract of ministry with the assistant is upon a wording which encompasses two conditions: the first being general control, the second being representation, and if the wording does not explicitly cover these two conditions, then the ministry for the assistant is not contracted.

Though he is empowered with representation and general control, it is permitted for the Khalifah to use him in a specific action or place at a period of time, and for other work or another place at another time. The two sheikhs (Muslim and Al-Bukhari) reported from Abu Hurayrah.

. » عُمَرَ عَلَى الصَّدَقَةِ بَ عَثَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ «.

“The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) sent Umar to collect Sadaqah (Zakah)”. Al-Nasa’i and Al-Darami reported.

. » حِينَ رَجَعَ مِنْ عُمْرَةِ الْجِعْرَانَةِ ب عََثَ أَبَا بَكْرٍ عَ لَى الْحَجِّ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ « .

“When the Prophet (phuh) returned from ’Umra, he sent Abu Bakr for the Hajj”. In other words, Abu Bakr (ra) and Umar (ra) – who were the two ministers for the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) , were charged with general control over specific actions, and not in all the actions at the time of the Messenger (pbuh) , despite that they were assistants authorised with general control and representation as inferred from the ministry of authorisation (Wizara’ Al-Tafwid). ’Ali (ra) and ’Uthman (ra) did the same at the time of Umar (ra). And even during the time of Abu Bakr (ra) when his assistant Umar (ra) was very apparent in exercising general control and representation, to the point that some of the companions would say to Abu Bakr (ra) that we don’t know whether Umar (ra) or you is the Khalifah, despite that Abu Bakr (ra) would make Umar (ra) responsible for the judiciary in some periods, as has been reported by Al-Bayhaqi with a chain that was strengthened by Al- Hafiz.

From the Sirah of the Messenger (pbuh) and the righteous Khulafaa’ after him, it is understood that the assistant is authorised in the general control and representation, but it is permitted for the Khalifah to seek the help of the assistant in a particular place or action, just as the Prophet (phuh) did with Abu Bakr (ra) and Umar (ra), and as Abu Bakr (ra) did with Umar (ra). This is like charging an assistant to pursue the northern governorships, and another with the southern ones, and it is permitted to use the first one in the place of the second and vice versa, and to move this one to the work of such and such person, and the other to another work according to what was necessitated to assist the Khalifah. None of this requires a new authorisation, rather it is valid in this case to move him from one action to another to assist, since he was originally authorised with general control and representation, and so all of these actions are part of his authorisation as an assistant. This is a difference between the assistant and the governor, since the governor is empowered with the general control in an area, and so he is not moved from it, rather he requires a new empowerment, since the new place is not part of the original authorisation/empowerment. However, an assistant who is empowered with the general control and representation can be moved from assistance in one place to another place without needing a new empowerment, since he was originally empowered with general control and representation in all actions.