Okaz/Saudi Gazette MAKKAH — Lack of services in villages east of Makkah has limited the aspirations of people living in the area. They are not looking for entertainment projects and do not hope to deliver marginal services because they still dream of basic ones. Although these areas are part of Makkah, asphalting is still a problem in addition to poor road conditions, while many villages in the Kingdom have met those needs. Nine villages where more than 10,000 people live and suffer from lack of services and infrastructure projects. The most important problem is poor roads, where most of them need asphalt and re-paving, in addition to lighting and sidewalks, not to mention the problems of sanitation and others. Residents called on the government to form committees to examine the needs of the villages and find a faster way to provide them with basic necessities. Several residents are searching for services and comfort in the Makkah city. Also many of them are forced to visit government and educational departments outside their villages. Hani Al-Zuhairi soke about the great suffering saying: "Villages suffer from a number of service problems including serious infrastructure issues." Turki Mohammed Al-Qurashi pointed out that these villages are considered to be important suburbs of the holy capital. There are tens of thousands of residents who live in them and have large areas suitable for housing. If these villages are taken care of properly, population pressure would ease in Makkah and old neighborhoods. Sultan Mohammed and Mahalal Al-Hilali added that improper roads is one of many problems. They pointed out that there was a huge sewage problem. "The drainage project has not yet been implemented. This has caused unpleasant odors and contaminated water to pollute the area especially during the rainy season." They also mentioned that incomplete desalinated water systems forced people to purchase water through private tankers. Malik Al-Maliki said that their villages suffer from lack of primary health care centers working around-the-clock to receive patients, especially the elderly and there is no alternative health center. Saeed Al-Maliki called for the need to establish a public hospital serving these populated villages, thus alleviating their suffering. The nearest hospital to serve their needs is located in Makkah, Jeddah or Taif. He also mentioned that basic services such as telecommunication do not exist where they live. "The telecom companies have not paid much attention to us. We are deprived of new technologies and new means of communication due to lack of communication towers," he said. Member of the municipal council in Makkah and Secretary of the Communications and Information Committee of the Council Berik Al-Osaimi called on the Makkah Municipality to give more attention to projects in the villages of north-east of Makkah, noting that these projects unfortunately are still slow in implementation due to interrupted work. He added that the real role of the municipal council is to meet the needs of the citizens and to know their wishes and work to achieve them in cooperation with officials in Makkah Municipality and the rest of service agencies.
