Con "Ustad" Dr. Shelby Haque

Edmonton's Ameer el-Mu'minin. A failed friend, a failed brother, and a con Ustad. Yuck. Yuck. Yuck.

"Ramzy must have given you a bloody nose." - Counselor, Marriage Fraud

Abdallah El-Haddad appointed Shelby Haque as Edmonton's Muqaddam. He was to look after the affairs of the Fuqara. He operates Tadhkirah. While Abdallah El-Haddad was the Tariqah figurehead, Ramzy Ajem was Shelby's "Operational and Tactical Boss."

According to Abdallah El-Haddad, "if Ramzy Ajem said something, it's as though I said it." That effectively meant, follow Ramzy Ajem.

I knew Shelby Haque well before joining the Tariqa and assumed him to be an upright man. He is a very generous man. May Allah reward him for his generosity. However, generosity is not a free ticket to oppress and support oppressors.

Dr. Shelby Haque - Background:

• He is very much a "Setup a Khilafah" type of a guy and personifies some "extension of the Khulafa Rashideen."
• A "passionate religious man" comes to mind when you meet him. "Mufti" is the first word one would utter. He looks the part and he sounds the part. He practically lived in Madina.
• For the community, he is knowledgeable in the Deen. Where in fact, he looks like he is knowledgeable in the Deen.
• He has no training in any of the Islamic sciences. He is a self-appointed, self-regulated, and a self-certified unqualified Ustad.
• His "Ustad" career goes back to his college days. The young and passionate holy man ready to fix the Ummah. The Tariqah was a great extension to his MSA-shaykh career. He could graduate and become a respected "Shaykh Shelby Haque." He desperately wanted to be a shaykh.
• He clearly recognized that the community blindly follows shaykhs and ustads. More importantly, no one is out regulating shaykhs. Also, no one is out fiqh-checking shaykhs. He knows that the Shaykh Stardom is a high-trust and zero-regulation space, a perfect gift for the unscrupulous.
• I respected him for his religious passion. He definitely stood out. We were "companions" and "brothers" for well over a decade. Fake goods he turned out. A phenomenal disappointment.
• He loves converts/reverts. Converts are nice because they don't know much. They are a fantastic brainwashing material. A unscrupulous cult leader can make a great blind follower out of one.
• He loves leadership and community power. The Tariqah gave him power over a people. He was loving it.
• One of his favorite quotes: "Bro, the kuffar don't even know how to wipe themselves." What an absurd thing to say. Meanwhile, he and his family benefit from very kuffar systems. Also, since he is a good wiper, what are his accomplishments?!
• He is an operating "Ustad" at the University of Alberta Muslim Students Association. It's a great recruiting ground to loop in fresh and maneuverable mureeds (or "students" of the Shaykh as Ramzy Ajem likes to call).

Dr. Shelby Haque - Criminal Record:

• Gossiping, backbiting, and slandering with the fuqara and other muqaddams. Shamelessly discussing marital, professional, and family matters with others. I called him out several times but he never cared. Even Edmonton's beloved Hafiz Mustafa Ghani participated in his gossip sessions.
• To me, some of these "fuqara" appeared like a gaggle of giggling girls. 30-somethings behaving like infants. Who is marrying who and who is not marrying who. Who is having kids and who is not having kids. Who is employed and who is unemployed. Who is rich and who is poor. Absurd and non-sensical conversations.
• I once spoke with Ramzy Ajem about Shelby's backbiting sessions. His response was, "When people get together, these things happen." What a pathetic excuse and a low bar to set for a muqaddam! I had a feeling this is all looking very shady.
• He knowingly facilitated oppression and oppressors through his involvement in my marriage fraud. His words to me: Ramzy Ajem must have given you a bloody nose" (suggesting Ramzy Ajem's "bullying" counsel). His "advice" to me was: "I would have to grovel to bring her back." He was strategic in communicating with me. He never wrote emails or text messages. Unlike his confidants, he didn't leave too many fingerprints. May be he feared being published if he sent anything in writing to me?
• Other assorted issues like derogatory and condescending attitude towards those who didn't follow his program and recommendations.
• A "masculinity policeman" for those who didn't want to marry his spousal suggestions. To me, this whole Tariqa shop looked like a structured way to get some of their close family and friends married. Expect to be bullied out of the group if you say no. As if, it's an obligation to marry their recommendation. There was some gross fiqh-failing happening.

Dr. Shelby Haque - Muqaddam:

Ramzy Ajem has been shamelessly lying about the existence of the Tariqah. To the community, Ramzy Ajem says: "We have no idea what is this Tariqah they speak of?!", "Who are these Muqaddams?!"

My inbox is littered with emails talking about the "Tariqah they speak of." A few emails from Shelby to the fuqara:

---