Saudi Gazette report JAZAN – A number of prominent figures have urged authorities to lift the ban on government employees obtaining a commercial license, saying it is the ideal way to put an end to cover up (Tasattur) businesses. They noted that some employees manage to bypass this restriction by resorting to fraudulent practices to secure commercial licenses by using the names of their wives, sisters and other female family members. This phenomenon leads to a host of problems, mainly the huge presence of foreigners engaged in Tasattur, according to a report in Al-Riyadh Arabic daily. “Female Tasattur” involves obtaining a commercial lease in the name of female family members — a wife, daughter, daughter-in-law, niece or aunt — to run a business. This phenomenon is partially why there are a large number of convenient stores (Baqalas) in the names of Saudi women. During the seven-month status correction campaign period, the concerned authorities discovered that most of the commercial registrations that had been subjected to rectification were in the names of Saudi women, especially close relatives of government officials. Umm Khaled, an elderly Saudi woman, says that all her sons, who include government employees and military personnel, run commercial shops where foreigners are working. Commercial registration of all these firms is in the names of their wives, sisters and other female members of the family. The experts called on the ministries of commerce and civil service to review the law and allow government employees to legally obtain commercial registrations and run commercial establishments and stores. They noted that this will help a large number of government employees, many who struggle to make ends meet, to make a better living without having to resort to deception. Abdurahman Al-Haijan, member of the Shoura Council, said that the Civil Service law prevents government employees from securing commercial registrations, but there are exemptions for those who want to open businesses in the real estate and farming sectors. However, they are not allowed to open retail stores. Al-Haijan urged the authorities to lift the ban provided that government employees abide by certain conditions. “These conditions should compel employees to strictly adhere to official working hours and not call in sick or neglect their duties during office hours.” He also underlined the need for organizing awareness and training programs for government employees in order to improve their efficiency in commercial activities. “If the present situation continues, then employees will simply continue to resort to fraudulent means to secure commercial licenses in the name of their women,” he said. Ahmed Al-Maliki, a lawyer and legal consultant, said several studies showed that allowing government employees to practice commercial activities would improve their financial situation. “This will eventually result in a decrease in the number of administrative crimes such as bribery, misuse of public wealth and earning money through corrupt practices,” he said. Al-Maliki noted that Article 13 of the Civil Service Law prevents government employees from practicing commercial activities directly or indirectly. They are also not allowed to take part in the setting up of any company or accept membership on the board of directors or take up any other similar duties. “Article 1/13 of the Civil Service Executive Bylaw prevents any government employee from practicing any activity similar to that of a trader. The basic objective of such laws is to safeguard the dignity and fairness of the profession. However, there are countless government employees who are practicing different forms of commercial activities in the name of their female family members. This involves malpractices and breaches of law in different ways,” he said while urging authorities to amend the laws in such a way that would guarantee the financial interests of employees. Jabir Al-Feefi, a government official, said it is high time to review the law. “It is unfair to prevent government employees from such businesses, while employees in the private sector can do as they please. Lifting the ban on government employees will lead to an end to Tasattur and reduce the Kingdom's dependency on foreign workers.” Al-Feefi noted that the Hafiz program exposed dozens of women who own bogus commercial firms. As a result of this, their names have been dropped from the list of beneficiaries of unemployment allowances, which in turn has led to a considerable decrease in the number of commercial registrations across the Kingdom. On the other hand, Nasser Bin Murie, chairman of the Jazan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, objected to lifting the ban. “Lifting the ban will prompt employees to leave the workplace and concentrate fully on their businesses. I wrote to the Council of Saudi Chambers about the negative effects of Tasattur on the Kingdom's economy and there should be decisive actions and concerted efforts to put an end to this phenomenon,” he said.
