DAMMAM, 20 August 2007 — If you are tired of waiting at banks or government departments, then don’t worry because there are people who can provide you with a quick solution. Groups of people are taking advantage of the overcrowding at government departments and banks by taking token numbers and selling them to clients who are in a hurry.
Banking sources in the Eastern Province noticed a group of people selling these numbers to waiting people.
This phenomenon has also been widely noticed in the Passport Department when people renew their iqamas (residency papers). People waiting in line sell their number to those that cannot or do not want to wait. The price ranges between SR10 to SR50 during peak times depending on how close the number is to being served.
The same sources from the local bank revealed that the culprits are usually the security men who are put in charge of watching the machines that dispense the numbers or people who come to the bank early in the morning and get as many numbers as they can and then sell them people who come later.
The value of a sold waiting number at banks could reach up to SR10 especially during peak times and SR5 in regular times.
