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MADINAH: Street vendors near the Prophet’s Mosque pose a risk to the country’s reputation and economy besides blocking the way of service cars, Red Crescent and Civil Defense vehicles, an expert has said.
Ninety-eight percent of these street merchants are non-Saudis, 90 percent of whom are violators of the residency and visa rules, local media has reported, adding that 95 percent of the traders are women and the rest children or disabled people.
Also, their presence reflects poorly on the government’s efforts to maintain the Two Holy Mosques.
“These random stalls are operated by expatriates and are a black spot in the register of the Two Holy Mosques, whether in terms of quality of buildings or Islamic architecture or the wide corridors for pilgrims’ comfort,” Mohammad Anwar Al-Bakri, professor of the Prophet’s life and history in Taiba University, was quoted as saying.
The pavement sellers are concentrated around five-star hotels, which further distorts the reputation of the Kingdom, he said.
The vendors offer bad quality goods, some even fix stickers saying that the products are made in Madinah. This amounts to creating a bad impression about the Kingdom as pilgrims buy them for their family and friends and are disappointed and helpless once they go back home, he said.
“Amongst the goods on offer are herbs with anonymous origin and are harmful for health. Visitors buy them after hearing a long explanation about their benefits and blessings because they are from Madinah. However, they are bad quality herbs which are mainly imported from East Asia, and no one knows about their medical benefits,” said Al-Bakri.
Two years ago, when a fire broke out in the area surrounding the Prophet’s Mosque, seven people died because Civil Defense vehicles could not reach the location quickly because of these stalls.
Mohammed Al-Bejawi, director of Haj branch in Madinah, expressing his discomfort and anger toward these stalls, especially those on the northern side of the mosque. He said the Haj Ministry is the one that suffers from this phenomenon since it obstructs services. “Our cars and staff can’t reach pilgrims to their accommodation quickly, especially during pilgrims’ groupings because of these obstructions (stalls),” he said.
“Women and the elderly also suffer because buses have to be park far away. This also causes delays for passengers from reaching their flights.”
The only solution for this crisis is combining efforts between the governorate, the Ministries of Haj and Commerce, said Al-Bakri. “First of all, wholesalers should be dealt with because they finance these stalls. A number of supervisors from the police and the Ministry of Commerce should be deploted around the area to remove these stalls as soon as they appear,” he said.
MADINAH: Street vendors near the Prophet’s Mosque pose a risk to the country’s reputation and economy besides blocking the way of service cars, Red Crescent and Civil Defense vehicles, an expert has said.
Ninety-eight percent of these street merchants are non-Saudis, 90 percent of whom are violators of the residency and visa rules, local media has reported, adding that 95 percent of the traders are women and the rest children or disabled people.
Also, their presence reflects poorly on the government’s efforts to maintain the Two Holy Mosques.
“These random stalls are operated by expatriates and are a black spot in the register of the Two Holy Mosques, whether in terms of quality of buildings or Islamic architecture or the wide corridors for pilgrims’ comfort,” Mohammad Anwar Al-Bakri, professor of the Prophet’s life and history in Taiba University, was quoted as saying.
The pavement sellers are concentrated around five-star hotels, which further distorts the reputation of the Kingdom, he said.
The vendors offer bad quality goods, some even fix stickers saying that the products are made in Madinah. This amounts to creating a bad impression about the Kingdom as pilgrims buy them for their family and friends and are disappointed and helpless once they go back home, he said.
“Amongst the goods on offer are herbs with anonymous origin and are harmful for health. Visitors buy them after hearing a long explanation about their benefits and blessings because they are from Madinah. However, they are bad quality herbs which are mainly imported from East Asia, and no one knows about their medical benefits,” said Al-Bakri.
Two years ago, when a fire broke out in the area surrounding the Prophet’s Mosque, seven people died because Civil Defense vehicles could not reach the location quickly because of these stalls.
Mohammed Al-Bejawi, director of Haj branch in Madinah, expressing his discomfort and anger toward these stalls, especially those on the northern side of the mosque. He said the Haj Ministry is the one that suffers from this phenomenon since it obstructs services. “Our cars and staff can’t reach pilgrims to their accommodation quickly, especially during pilgrims’ groupings because of these obstructions (stalls),” he said.
“Women and the elderly also suffer because buses have to be park far away. This also causes delays for passengers from reaching their flights.”
The only solution for this crisis is combining efforts between the governorate, the Ministries of Haj and Commerce, said Al-Bakri. “First of all, wholesalers should be dealt with because they finance these stalls. A number of supervisors from the police and the Ministry of Commerce should be deploted around the area to remove these stalls as soon as they appear,” he said.
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