RIYADH, 10 January 2007 — Citizens and residents are complaining about a 300 percent increase in fees for postal services, something that is unaffordable for a huge section of the population. When the new Saudi postal service was launched, many people thought prices would decrease and in the least services would dramatically improve. On the contrary, prices have increased and the quality of service has worsened leaving many people disappointed.
“Fees have now increased not only for companies but also for private individuals. Individuals have to pay SR100, families SR300 and companies between SR1,000 and SR3,000 for renting post boxes. In the past a post box was worth SR100 regardless of who the owner is,” Saad Al-Tukais, a Riyadh resident, told Al-Riyadh newspaper.
Many people complain about the miserable conditions of their post boxes and how insecure they are. “Government offices are now obliging every individual, let alone every company, to have a post box. This they say will make much easier for people to receive parcels, documents, bills and letters. However, the huge increase in prices along with the decline in the quality of the service is just stressing people out,” said Baleed ibn Ateek, another Riyadh resident.
“These prices are rather tough and are not reasonably fixed considering the middle and low-income people who consist of the majority of customers,” he added.
Ateek said people have to travel long distances to post offices in order to be able to collect their post. “It is only in cities that people are able to get their letters and bills from their personal boxes that are attached to their homes. However, even in large cities the quality of service is poor,” he said.
“Those boxes are easily and commonly broken into and are totally insecure. The increase in prices is not in line with the way the quality of service is developing. The authorities need to balance prices and improve their services,” he added.
Tarad ibn Jaza Suahia said that postal prices have seen a 300 percent increase lately. “This is the first time that we are hearing of a government department that benefits from its citizens. We are obliged to register for a post box in order to get our documents, letters and bills. Saudi Post is one of the oldest government departments and is said to be one of the most developed ones. Unfortunately, it still does not provide services that can be called admirable,” he said.
“The situation of the Saudi postal system is now adding to the endless list of stresses that citizens must face. I sometimes find my letters in the boxes of others and in other cases I find others’ mail inside mine,” he added.
