Street vendors ‘ruining Jeddah Corniche’

Saudi Gazette report JEDDAH — Visitors to Jeddah Corniche are demanding tourism police prevent street sellers from trading in crowded places and ruining the view of the place, Al-Madinah newspaper reported. One visitor, Umm Ahmad, said Jeddah Corniche is a very beautiful place to spend the weekend but it is often disturbed by unlicensed street sellers. “Most of the sellers are African women who just show up in these public areas and display their merchandise. They sell toys and candy to children but it is unregulated and we don’t know if these are safe for consumption,” she said. She added the phenomenon is harming the image of the Corniche. “We must present our best attractions in an inviting way. These street sellers sit in random places obstructing pedestrians and yell to sell their merchandise. The Corniche is a family getaway and a place to relax by the sea in the dynamic city of Jeddah,” Ahmed said. Mohammad Abdulatheem said Jeddah is one of the main tourist attractions in the Kingdom and is the bride of the Red Sea. “We all want to enjoy the beauty of Jeddah. But we can’t when those street sellers bring their junk to sell to children and disturb us all. The Corniche is being maintained by the municipality and these street sellers are tainting it by bringing their merchandise and dumping them behind a bush somewhere to return the next day,” Abdulatheem said. Ahmad Al-Yami said Jeddah city is visited by people from all over the Kingdom. “It’s a shame to have people visit Jeddah to be disappointed when they see the mess caused by these random street sellers. We need the municipality to take further initiative and regulate them. We need to have tourism police to ensure that the tourist attractions in the city are maintained and not abused,” Al-Yami said.