Rakham Tarik Al-Asmari 
| |
| |
|---|---|
| Name | Rakham Tarik Al-Asmari |
| Full name | Rakham ibn Tarik ibn Siran Al-Asmari راكهام بن طارق بن سيرين الأسمري |
| Sex |  Male
|
| Born | 17 October, 1949, Chicago, Illinois,  United States
|
| Spouse | Nalisha Shakim Abu Shakra (m. 1968-present) |
| Children | Hassen Rakham Al-Asmari (b. 1971) Shamara Rakham Al-Asmari (b. 1973) Malik Rakham Al-Asmari (b. 1977) |
| Parents | Zakir Siran Al-Asmari (father) Mirah Kamarri Zuabi (mother) |
| Home | Al-Asmari Estate,  Thameen,  Kings
|
| Functions | Businessman Economics professor Politician |
| Party affiliation | Dirigist Party |
| Languages | English (primary), Arabic, Persian, French, Spanish, Chinese |
| Religious stance |
Muslim |
Rakham ibn Tarik ibn Siran Al-Asmari (Arabic: راكهام بن طارق بن سيرين الأسمري) (born 17 October, 1949 in Chicago) is a wealthy American-born businessman who migrated to the Lovia in the 1990s with his family seeking new economic opportunities for his business; Algebra. His serves as a part-time economics professor at universities throughout Lovia, most notable being at the Nobel University in Noble City, Sylvania. Following the 2014 federal elections, Rakham was selected to serve as the Minister of Agriculture under the Abrahams I Government, replacing Charles Alexander Bennett, who became Minister of Energy and Resources after the elections. In 2015, Rakham founded the Dirigist Party of Lovia, and is seeking to expand his party's influence in Lovian politics in the coming years.
Biography[]
Early Life and Education[]
Rakham Tarik Al-Asmari was born on 17 October, 1949, in the city of Chicago, Illinois, to Zakir Siran Al-Asmari, a construction worker; and Mirah Kamarri Zuabi, an accountant at the Bank of Chicago. His family was well-to-do as far as other African-American families were concerned, and lived in the district of Bronzeville. His father was a member of the Nation of Islam, and wanted his son to do well for himself in the climate of the time. He was home-schooled until 1962, when he was sent to Catholic private school, De La Salle Institute, which was located within Bronzeville. He was attacked for his beliefs in Islams, and teachers threatened to fail him if he didn't convert to Christianity. His father told him to persevere, and to claw his way to success, stating that he had a chance neither he nor his father had.
With the pressure to satisfy his father's dreams, and to get through school without compromising on his beliefs, Rakham joined a gang in school which was made up of fellow Muslim students who had enough with the threats and attacks because of their beliefs. The gang got into fights with other students, and caused trouble for the teachers as they refused to obey them. In July 1964, Rakham got into a fist-fight another student, and broke his nose. In September of that year, Rakham witnessed a brutal beating of a fellow Muslim that had just entered, and fueled by hate and anger, Rakham went after them. He stole his father's gun and upon catching the assailants, shot one dead, and wounded three others. The incident was reported to the police immediately by neighbors, and Rakham was sent to the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center.
He was later expelled for killing a fellow student, and given a sentence of two years (he confessed to the murder was was given a lighter sentence). In prison, Rakham taught himself business skills and got into contact with the Nation of Islam, who sent him book and information on economics so he could find a job after leaving. In December of 1966, Rakham was released from the detention center, and greeted by his family who managed to get a a job working with a fellow Muslim in the banking industry. The man was well connected, and knew of the reason Rakham was sent to jail, praising him for his determination and sense of justice. Rakham was able to hold the job for six years, climbing up the ranks to become the manager of the bank he worked at.
Family life and the business world[]
In 1967, Rakham met Nalisha Shakim Abu Shakra, a fellow Muslim who was hired by the bank to work as a teller. They dated for a number of months, and later married in June of 1968. They moved to Hyde Park, Chicago in 1970, where Nalisha opened a small tailor shop out of their apartment. That same year, she gave birth to Hassen Rakham Al-Asmari. Rakham was interested in joining the military and fighting in Vietnam after a number of associates had joined in the hopes of making a name for themselves. In 1971, Rakham joined the United States Marines, and served a single tour of duty all the way up until the United Stated pulled out of Vietnam. He returned just in time to witness the birth of his daughter Shamara Rakham Al-Asmari in 1973.
Rakham was emotionally scarred by the war, and turned to alcoholism shortly after to sooth the memories of the fighting. His marriage suffered greatly, physical abuse becoming commonplace with his wife. When their third child Malik Rakham Al-Asmari was born in 1977, Nalisha threatened to divorce him if he didn't get himself back together. For the sake of his love for his wife, and the future of his children, Rakham swore off liquor, and turned back toward starting his own business. He got in touch with a close friend in the Nation of Islam, Daray Nuam Abdullah, and discussed the prospects of starting a business focusing on supplying a number of products such as medicine, foodstuffs, and clothing.
Together, Rakham and Daray started the Algebra Corporation in 1979; which itself was a small company that started off buying and selling foods like bread, milk, honey, and fruits. They called on a number of close friends and relatives, and brought in more resources and connections that were able to launch them into world hard business that became the hallmark of 1980's America. The growth of Rakham's company brought him wealth and power as Algebra began expanding into the fields of medicine, clothing, and later, weapons. He was delighted when he was told that a number of his friends were considering expanding their business overseas, and of the nations considered, Lovia was considered as the future home of Algebra.
Immigration to Lovia[]
After tens of business in America, Rakham was considering using his wealth to move overseas. He didn't want to move into another crowded, crime-ridden city like Chicago, and the nightmares of Vietnam that haunted him, saw him seek out a tranquil area that he and his family could enjoy together. Rakham's wife suggested Lovia, and given that his friends had already considered the small island kingdom as the future headquarters for Algebra, Rakham was sold on the idea. In 1991, the Al-Asmari family immigrated to Lovia seeking to rinse their hands of the troubles in America.
Rakham purchased the Coningham House in Hurket-on-Kings, Portland upon arriving in Lovia, and began sending out word to their friends and family of their new homeland. Rakham applied for citizenship in 1993, and moved the headquarters of Algebra to Noble City when his affairs were in order. From his new quiet home in the sparsely populated kingdom, Rakham sought to begin branching out into Lovian society, getting a job at Nobel University teaching as an economics professor part-time, and later seeking to go into politics when opportune time presented itself.
He sponsored and masterminded the construction of the Grand Mosque of Newhaven, which he hoped would provide Lovian Muslims a center of worship to coalesce around. The sponsorship gained him much acclaim and respect from his fellow Muslims, and later saw him join the Lovian Muslim Brotherhood in 1997 to better aid his brothers of the faith. In the years following his membership, Rakham became a active and vocal member of the LMB, and was quick to see to it that the voice of Lovia's small Muslim minority group were properly heard in the government. It was then that he felt it to be the right time to pursue a career in politics.
Lovian Civil War[]
During the time of the Lovian Civil War, Rakham was quick to remain neutral until he and his friends could decide whom to support. Rakham was a secret supporter of the rebels, and was even considered ordering his PMC forces into combat should it appear that the rebels would be on the winning side of the conflict. However, before he could order a full battalion to Lovia, he was stopped by his wife, who recognized that the government would prevail, and that his dream of a quiet life in Lovia would not survive the war if the rebels won. Thus, Rakham was forced to throw his support behind the government and the monarchy out of the need to preserve his way of life.
Using his pull with the Muslim community, Rakham made a number of appearance as local markets and private residences urging them not to support the rebels, as the end result was not going to be a victory given the support of so many Western nations. His efforts worked, and it saw the open refusal of Muslims to join the side of the rebel forces in Oceana or Sylvania. By the end of the war, Kings was placed under law, the state that Rakham was now calling his home. Rakham has since been wishing to call on his private army to step in, but his advisers in Algebra have urged him to stay out of the rebels' fight, and focusing on contracting the able-bodied forces to governments in Africa, where the "real money" is.
Entry into Politics[]
After much deliberation and thought, he joined the Green Party in 2012, after receiving an invitation from its founder and leader, Nicholas Sheraldin. The plan to push ahead for the office of Prime Minister of Lovia was always Rakham's original desire. However, being a recent entree to Lovian politics, Rakham and his wife agreed that something along the lines of a seat in Congress would be right for him. He is hoping that he will have the backing of the backing of the Muslim population during the elections, and that his constituents will aid him in his drive to victory. Following the 2013 elections, Rakham felt he had been left out of the sidelines as some of the GP members gained prestigious positions. Though keeping this thought personal, Rakham has been growing increasingly discontent with the current state of affairs.