Saudi Gazette report



BAHA – Expatriates who run stalls at Al-Baha vegetable market are being accused of paying Saudi citizens a monthly stipend and including them on their payroll to trick the authorities into believing they are in compliance with Saudization requirements.



Saudis are paid between SR50 and SR100 a day for essentially doing no work but are required to be present when representatives of the Ministry of Labor or the municipality’s Saudization Committee visit the market.

It is further alleged that expatriates hold a monopoly over the market and control prices while only two stalls are run by Saudis.



One of the two Saudi men who own stalls in the market said not only are expatriates resorting to illegal methods to circumvent nationalization requirements but they also prevent young Saudis from opening their own stalls.



“They are aided by Saudis who allow them to run businesses in their names. On paper, Saudis own the stalls but it is no secret that these are expatriate-run businesses,” he said on condition of anonymity.



The other Saudi man, Saeed Al-Oraiji, said market prices are not being monitored by authorities and expatriate workers control prices to discourage Saudis from earning or even starting their own businesses.



“I’m ready to prove to the authorities that there are some Saudi men who show up in the morning when inspectors visit shops and leave right after inspectors are gone. They do this in broad daylight ignoring the fact that this action has negative effects on other Saudis running their own shops,” Al-Oraiji said, while calling on authorities to pay surprise visits to the market and put an end to the illegal practices.



Responding to a letter sent by Al-Watan daily regarding the situation, Al-Baha Mayor Muhammad Al-Majali said the mayoralty’s inspectors visit the vegetable market on a daily basis during official work hours and refer violators to the Ministry of Labor. The ministry’s director, Ibrahim Al-Zulfan, said it is difficult for inspectors to do their job when Saudis willingly choose to help expatriate workers circumvent the Kingdom’s laws.