MAKKAH, 10 June 2007 — Being insulted and belittled is part and parcel of the job of security guards, who are tasked with carrying out one of the most difficult jobs in the Kingdom.
Walk into any bank, government office and shopping mall and security guards tend to be helpful and polite. However, many sections of the public claim guards are unprofessional and unfit for the job.
Security guards on the other hand claim that people just do not give them respect and that they are regularly insulted, mistreated and even beaten up.
Arab News spoke to a number of security guards in Makkah to get their side of the story.
Security guards at the Al-Nour Specialist Hospital, one of Makkah’s leading and most distinguished hospitals, are simply not taken seriously. Stories of guards at Al-Nour being abused by visitors are common.
“Over time I’ve learned to become more patient and understanding when dealing with people,” said Isam Bakawi, who has been working as a security guard for 18 years.
Bakawi, whose colleagues describe him to be as “patient as a camel,” regularly faces challenging situations. “A month ago a Saudi man came to hospital after closing time to visit a relative. Guards prevented him from entering since visiting time was over. In turn, the man became angry and took off his shoe to beat them up,” said Bakawi.
“I interfered and took him to my office to calm him down. However, he took off his shoe to hit me,” said Bakawi, who finally had to call the police. Bakawi said he pitied the man and did not ask for him to be punished.
On another occasion, Bakawi discovered a young man and a woman “in an improper state” in a car in the hospital’s parking lot. “I spoke to him politely and asked him to leave the hospital premises. However, he got angry and asked who I was to ask him to leave,” said Bakawi, adding that he then asked his colleagues to force the man to leave.
“We didn’t call the authorities because that would just cause more problems for them,” said Bakawi.
Muhammad Abu Al-Ala has been working as a security guard for eight years. “I know of loads of cases in which guards have ended up being the victims. Many people strongly believe that security guards are illiterate and are unable to deal with the public,” he said.
“One day a man came along with his family to meet a relative after the visiting times were over. We explained that the time was over and asked him to leave at which he claimed that we had pulled his wife’s abaya,” said Abu Al-Ala.
Security guards tried to calm the man down. “None of us touched his wife or her abaya. He was not convinced and started to insult us. In the end he telephoned the police. When they came they found out he was lying,” said Abu Al-Ala.
On another occasion, said Abu Al-Ala, a man claimed that a security guard had touched his wife’s hand after the man and his wife were prevented from entering a hospital. “He made up an entire fictional story and told police about it. That could have placed the guard in real trouble,” said Abu Al-Ala.
“However, it was the wife who clarified the matter by saying that the guard had not touched her and that her husband was lying. The guard could have lodged a complaint, but he didn’t,” he added.
Ahmad Al-Amir said that once an old man came to the hospital where he works. “The man was talking loudly and hitting the doctor’s door in an attempt to go in. I went over to him and looked at his card and asked him to wait his turn. He just started to scream and said it wasn’t any of my business,” said Al-Amir. “What can we do in such a scenario? Nothing much. We just have to carry on, I suppose,” he said.
Security guards Bandar Bukhari, Abdul Aziz Matar, Sameer Abdul Sattar, and Khaled Al-Hilali all agree that there is a general lack of knowledge and awareness about security guards and their role. They also say that guards are regularly insulted and face lots of trouble.
“This often leads to security guards becoming depressed and sad. Whatever happens we just try to remain calm,” said Bukhari, speaking on behalf of the group.
Ali ibn Hasan Al-Ghamdi, a security guard manager at the Al-Nour Specialist Hospital, said: “Those who work in this line of work are devoting themselves to their country. Their main principles are love, giving and sacrificing their lives for the Kingdom.”
“There is a lack of awareness among citizens about the role of security guards,” said Al-Ghamdi, adding that those who work in this domain are generally patient and understanding. He also added that security guards are not absolutely blameless.
According to him, there are 117 security guards currently working at the Al-Nour Hospital and that 50 others will soon join. “They are all employed and trained to serve patients, visitors, and hospital staff members. We seek cooperation from everyone to achieve our goal,” said Al-Ghamdi.
