Okaz newspaper THE Saudi Credit Bureau (SIMAH) reminds me of movies about invisible creatures, because they are existent and nonexistent at the same time. SIMAH can be likened to the invisible female jinn that enters the body of a middle class man and turns his life upside down. He can neither enjoy the taste of food nor can he sleep. He cannot discover the existence of the jinn except through a Raqi (Qur'an healer). In theory, SIMAH does not have any power over middle class citizens, simply because it is a company that provides credit information to its clients, which include banks, and automobile and telecom companies. In practice, however, it has full power over consumers. All giant companies have joined hands against consumers, who have to face the battle alone amid the clear absence of regulations that protect consumers' rights. The chairman of the Consumer Protection Association (CPA) appeared to show great concern recently about consumers' complaints about SIMAH, and it seemed from his fiery statements that he was waging a war against the organization. Of course, I do not have to tell you or SIMAH that such attacks are futile, because the CPA deserves a special prize from the Civil Defense for its strict compliance with safety measures! However, my point is that even if this fierce war takes place, it will only be a virtual one, because SIMAH, just like the CPA, is an invisible entity that cannot be seen with the naked eye. The war will be similar to the imaginary ones youths engage in with video games. There are many shots fired and dead people are seen all over the screen. Then when the time is up the youths throw away their joysticks and go to sleep. Their snores are so loud they can be heard by the whole world. Let me prove my point by narrating the story of a simple consumer called Khalid. You will then know that we are dealing with intangible beings that can be dangerous. They eat our bones the way termites eat wood. Khalid purchased a car on installments from a big car agency four years ago. Some months later he had a disagreement with the agency. The CPA was not there to back him up because it is an intangible organization. Khalid filed a lawsuit against the company, but no verdict has been issued yet. He recently went to a bank seeking a loan. But he was told that his name was on a blacklist of defaulters because he had not paid the remaining dues to the car agency. Khalid started asking around about SIMAH. “Where is it, so I can tell them a verdict has not been issued yet,” he asked. After much searching, he found SIMAH. But then he learned that this virtual organization can hear only the sound waves of banks and companies. It does not pick up signals coming from the mouths of consumers. The SIMAH officials did not listen to a single word, because they only listen to those who pay them. Khalid called the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA), under which SIMAH is supposed to function. SAMA told him the matter was not of their concern. A wise man had some words of advice: “Listen son! As long as SIMAH is a company then it will be under the Ministry of Commerce.” So on April 9, Khalid went to the Legal Affairs Department of the Commerce Ministry. He was surprised when the legal adviser showed him a notice saying that the ministry has nothing to do with complaints related to SIMAH. Khalid was not convinced. “How can it be a company and still not come under the Ministry of Commerce?” he asked. The legal adviser sympathized. He asked Khalid to get a printout about the company from the first floor. Khalid took a token and sat down. His number was 249. When his turn came, the employee seemed to be astonished upon hearing the name of the company. It was as if he had never heard about it before. “I don't want you to waste the SR100 you've paid without getting some result,” he told Khalid. The employee tried his best and searched the database in different ways. However, there was no result. Khalid returned to the legal adviser stunned thinking that SIMAH must be a nonexistent entity. The legal adviser stuck to the notice that the Ministry of Commerce has nothing to do with complaints related to SIMAH. Khalid, I and some of my readers want nothing from the CPA except help in solving this perplexing puzzle: Under what authority does SIMAH come? __
