MAKKAH – After the contractor responsible for cleaning the streets of Makkah and collecting garbage from city districts was placed in the yellow category of the Nitaqat program, 2,000 of its 6,500 workers have been unable to renew their residency permits (iqamas). Unsure of their future, workers have refused to report to duty and garbage has started to accumulate in the city. The company, which was previously in the green category, said in order to be in compliance with the Ministry of Labor's nationalization quota, it would need to spend SR5 million on hiring Saudi nationals.
Abdulghaffar Al-Azhari, the contracting company's director of maintenance, said the company was not able to renew the workers' iqamas because it was downgraded to Nitaqat's yellow category. Nearly all of the company's 6,500 cleaners have refused to collect garbage and clean city streets in protest of the delay in payment of their salaries, delays in renewal of their residency permits and the contractor reneging on commitments and promises made to the workers earlier. Lt. Col. Abdulmuhsin Al-Maiman, security spokesman for Makkah police, said police officers had been stationed at the workers' compound in Al-Kaakiya district. He said officers were on hand to prevent any unrest from breaking out as concerned authorities tried to resolve the problem. Muhammad Al-Mourqi, Director General for Cleaning at the Makkah mayoralty, promised swift action to contain the crisis. Different temporary workers will be assigned to collect accumulating garbage, he said. “Garbage has piled up due to non-compliance on the part of the contractor in fulfilling its commitments,” Al-Mourqi said.
