By Khaled Al-Diyabi

Okaz/Saudi Gazette

ATEEF – People of Ateef, a vital township 90 km east of Taif, have called upon authorities to take immediate steps to provide them with basic infrastructure facilities and public services.

They are hopeful that Taif Mayor Mohammed Al-Homail, who took over the new position about six months ago, would change the face of Ateef especially after his pledge that he would give priority to infrastructure development of Taif and its surrounding townships and villages.

Located on the Taif-Riyadh Expressway, Ateef’s unpaved roads have been spreading dust causing various pulmonary diseases. Lack of street lights was the main reason for increasing road accidents in the town, people said, adding that such accidents have claimed many lives over the past years.

Hadhal Maeed Al-Otaibi, a resident, said no development has taken place on its service road, which was constructed 10 years ago. “We don’t know the reason for keeping this road in poor condition without taking any action for its development,” he told Okaz/Saudi Gazette.

He urged the Transport Ministry to take quick action to repair the road. “There are several potholes in the streets of Ateef that damage vehicles and cause accidents,” he added.

The road’s condition becomes bad to worse during the rainy season, when a number of swamps are created in the streets, which serve as breeding grounds for disease-carrying mosquitoes.

“We need immediate action from authorities to end our suffering,” he added.

Nasser Al-Otaibi put the blame on Taif Municipality and Transport Ministry for Ateef’s woes. “Ours is a vital township which is placed in a strategic location, but it lacks basic infrastructure facilities due to negligence of authorities,” he told Okaz/Saudi Gazette.

He said Ateef has not received its share of development projects over the past several years. “We need street lights to save the township from darkness after sunset,” he insisted.

Faisal Al-Rouqi also denounced the authorities’ negligence toward Ateef. “We need asphalting of roads and setting up of street lights," he said.