Al-Riyadh reports that foreign nationals are making money at the expense of Saudis.
Thousands of foreigners, many of them unqualified to work in the Kingdom, use the name and commercial licenses of Saudi citizens for their cover up operations.
These Saudis receive a nominal amount of money in return for doing everything to ensure these foreigners can operate.
The expatriates, who are dominating the Kingdom’s retail market, mainly run grocery stores and retail commercial shops in the Kingdom.
Such shops may carry the name of their Saudi owners, but the profits go directly into the pockets of foreigners who exploit the attractive business environment in the Kingdom. This is because they do not need to pay any taxes to the government.
Moreover, they also do not come under the purview of the law, which requires expatriates to fulfill certain conditions in order to do business in the Kingdom.
Hundreds of thousands of foreigners are engaged in such clandestine commercial activities at a time when an increasing number of qualified young Saudis, carrying files with their credentials, are approaching companies and firms in search of jobs.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has intensified its campaign against these illegal activities, which are having a negative impact on the Kingdom’s society, economy and security, according to experts at a Riyadh seminar that was discussing this particular issue. Recommendations made at the event include finding out who was responsible for this trend, how to monitor and tackle the practice, and whether there was a law to name and shame those involved.
Addressing the event, keynote speaker Adel Al-Sarami called this practice as the greatest challenge facing the Saudi business and commercial sector, adding there were several factors contributing to its rise.
Firstly, he said, the expatriates exploit the fact there is no effective system to monitor and contain these illegal activities. He added that the absence of a flawless monitoring system to curb such businesses is another factor. Thirdly, he noted, many unqualified foreigners see this as the suitable field for them to earn money without paying any taxes.
Adel Al-Baqa’awi, another speaker, blamed Saudi citizens for exacerbating the problem.
“Saudi citizens are acting as a shield for such illegal activities, of which the biggest victims are the Kingdom and its citizens. The major beneficiaries are unqualified foreigners, who are otherwise a liability to the burgeoning labor market of the Arab world’s largest economy,” he said.
Addressing the seminar, Mohammed Al-Qahtani said that Saudi missions abroad should also be blamed for hiring such unqualified foreigners. He noted that these expatriates, who control the Kingdom’s grocery market, were mainly responsible for the increase in prices of foodstuff.
Al-Qahtani and Al-Sarami said that chambers of commerce and industry in various regions of the Kingdom cannot play a real role in curbing these trade activities.
They added it was the ministries of commerce, labor, finance and interior that are responsible for putting an end to this practice.
They also said the chambers only play a supervisory role, which is restricted to raising awareness among Saudi sponsors about preventing their workers from engaging in such illegal activities. The speakers also noted that the black market for visa trade contributes to this problem.
According to Al-Qahtani, nearly 80 percent of shops, such as grocery stores, restaurants, cafeterias, launderettes, barber shops, garment shops, gas stations, maintenance shops, and electrical shops are controlled by foreigners.
However, Saudis are the owners of these shops only in records. The lion’s share of revenues from these firms goes into the pockets of the foreign workers and the Saudi owners receive a fixed commission for providing a cover for their activities.
According to Al-Baqa’awi, these activities are mainly responsible for the rise in organized crimes in the Kingdom.
The seminar came up with several proposals and recommendations to put an end to this illegal activity. Al-Baqa’awi called for making amendments in the law banning this practice outright.
“Amendments should be made to make this activity an economic crime instead of an illegal activity. There should be a separate wing of inspection squads to monitor this offense, and those found guilty should be prosecuted after a trial at a specialized commercial court set up for the purpose,” he said.
The speakers also called up for an intense awareness campaign among Saudis against this activity, adding there should also be strict monitoring measures in place when hiring foreign nationals.
They also urged authorities to step up the Saudization drive to replace foreign nationals, who dominate the commercial sector. There were also calls for strict punitive measures, including a two-year jail term and fines of up to SR1 million, for those engaged in this activity.
