I would like to highlight the difficulties people, especially expatriates, are facing at the Jawazat (Passport Department) office at Rehab. First of all the system, if there is any, is not at all organized. People keep on guessing what to do next or where to go next? Secondly, the unruly behavior of the Jawazat staff makes it even more difficult to visit that place. I have been trying to get my information transferred i.e. Naql-e-Malumat. Despite visiting the Jawazat office for three consecutive days, I failed to obtain a token number no matter how early I went there.
People wait outside the office and as soon as the gates are opened a flood of people enters the office premises and a mob-like situation is created at the counter to get token numbers. It would be pertinent to mention here that on an average around 200 people visit the place daily and only one person has been deployed to cater to this huge number. This Jawazat official throws the tokens at the people who jostle to get hold of a token and only the lucky ones — usually the stronger ones — succeed in grabbing these tokens. This is a very insulting way to distribute the tokens and dangerous as well. I, along with some like-minded people, on our visit to the office came up with an idea to avoid the chaotic situation that occurs upon the opening of the office’s gate. We wrote down names of each and every person in the order of their arrival. When the office opened, we handed the list over to a Jawazat official. Instead of thanking us for a job that he is supposed to do, he tore the paper to bits and threw it away as if he wanted to enjoy the scene of people almost fighting each other to get the tokens. That was a very embarrassing moment of my life. I am not the only one who had suffered in this manner. Many of my friends have similar stories to share. I request the relevant authorities to look into this matter on an urgent basis and streamline the procedures on the lines similar to the Jawazat office in Makkah by increasing the number of personnel to handle the cases and by deploying a policeman to maintain order. — M.A. Farooqui, Jeddah
A nightmarish experience at Jawazat
