RIYADH: Officials here have warned the public to be aware of people distributing promotional material because some are criminals intent on breaking into cars and homes. Such material also contributes to littering in the city, said officials. Colonel Nasser Al-Qahtani, Spokesman of the Riyadh Police, said the distribution of promotional advertisements on the roads, in car parks and anywhere else, is a violation punishable by law. He said Prince Sattam Bin Abdul Aziz, Deputy Emir of Riyadh, has issued an order banning the distribution of promotional advertisements at residences. Prince Sattam said that violators will be punished severely. He said some people use these advertisements to promote illicit items and contraband. People delivering this material are a nuisance and invade the privacy of others. He said Riyadh police have been cracking down on offenders. A number of people have been arrested red-handed while distributing promotional material on the streets and to residences. “They dealt with the violators according to the (Deputy] Emir's instructions.” To combat this phenomenon the ministries of Commerce, Labor, Culture and Information, Mayoralty and Passports need to work together, he said. Meanwhile, Eng. Ahmad Al-Bassam, Director of Cleanliness at Riyadh Mayoralty, said that committees at all the mayoralty's branches have been tasked with monitoring and punishing owners of companies and shops who break the law distributing promotional advertisements in buses and public places. He said violators will be warned for a first offense but will be fined the second time. He said the size of the advertisement will determine the size of the fine. He said local laws authorize every subsidiary municipality to impose a reasonable fine on violators who fall in their zone. The authorities have already started issuing fines to business owners because they have not heeded warnings. Badr Amer, a teacher, said that thieves target people's cars and houses using the advertisements. If these criminals see that such material is not removed from the front door of a house, or from a car, then they know that the owners are not around. Majed Al-Harbi, a resident at Al-Naseem district said, “The piling up of promotional ads at my door causes great inconvenience to me. It makes me feel that my door has become a billboard.”
