Unregulated expat-run market upsets citizens

JEDDAH — The thriving unregulated expatriate-run market under what has now come to be known as Workers’ Bridge Jeddah's Kilo 8 vicinity has upset several citizens. They complain that expatriates, most of them illegal, gather and sell exposed and unregulated food and other products, Al-Madina reported. Khalid Musaed said the Workers’ Bridge became known over the years for being the place where expatriates and people from various foreign communities, especially Africans, gathered. They sell products without a license and under no regulations, he said. He added the municipality has been trying for years to curb such illegal and unregulated activities but they are still ongoing. “We have been calling for years for the place to be shut down. The municipality needs to close the entrances underneath the bridge. African expatriates here prepare food in these polluted nooks underneath the bridge and then sell to the general public,” said Musaed. He added African expatriates sometimes even sell illegal products brought from Africa. People buy from them because they know they would not find these products elsewhere. Faisal Al-Qaisi said the expatriates gather at the weekend and the whole district becomes so crowded. “The expatriates sell and prepare food underneath the bridge. Trucks drive past the bridge and over it all the time polluting the area and creating an unsanitary environment for food. The practice spreads a stench in the neighborhood and invites pests and rodents,” said Al-Qaisi. Siddiq Mohammad, an expatriate, frequents the market under the bridge. “It is a family place for us and our children to gather and play at the end of every week. We got used to visiting the place after so many years of doing so. We find here some food products and other products from our homelands. We won’t find such products anywhere else in the city,” said Mohammad. He added by time the place has become a weekly market for food, clothes and other cultural products.