Question: I own a large, sprawling tract of land in which there is a fixed percentage for the waqf. I took charge of it because I saw many covetous people fixing their eyes on the waqf’s land to seize it. I want to be rid of it, and I do not like it to remain among my property for fear of the liabilities upon me and those after me. How do I rid myself of it?
Answer—with Allah’s enabling: The endowed land has come into your custody and guarantee. If you abandon it and remove your hand from it, and the covetous then seize it, you are liable for what they seize, and you are responsible before Allah. If you hand it to an authority you know to be negligent about the waqf’s beneficiaries, you are remiss regarding the waqf and will be obliged before Allah to redeem and guarantee it.
In reality, you have been tested with a waqf. What I see for you is to sell part of the waqf and with the price build dwellings that serve the interests of the beneficiaries. If the land is for mosques, you disburse the yields for mosque repairs. If it is for shrines (turab), you disburse to scholars and learners. If it is for something similar, you spend it on public interests—consulting in this those scholars you trust. You may not remove the waqf from your oversight except to someone whose religion and trustworthiness you are confident in.
It is also obligatory to formalize documents identifying and delimiting what waqf assets are in your custody and specifying their disbursement categories—so the waqf is not lost.
The man who undertakes to improve the waqf is entitled to a wage. Two upright men are to estimate his wage—i.e., the fee deserved for overseeing the sale, then the building and repair until it becomes fit for exploitation—and he may then be allotted a percentage of the rental income in return for carrying out the leasing and following up with tenants. The rate is determined by customary practice in such matters. All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
Source: Min Thimār al-ʿIlm wa al-Ḥikmah vol.2