It contained an article that stipulated a housing allowance, paid annual leave of 45 days and a return air ticket to the employee. That day I questioned: Do all Saudi employees have their own houses? Are they given housing allowances? I said to myself that I should not be envious because our friends, the foreigners, are helping us build our nation.
I then thought of the rules and regulations of civil service that favor foreigners. I soon found the answer. It was foreigners who formulated these rules and regulations at the very beginning. They were keen to preserve their rights and service their own interests. Of course civil service has been stagnant for many years. I recalled this dialogue two days ago when I read a news item about a job fair in Jeddah. Among the funny scenes in this exhibition were:
• The company which organized the exhibition was Lebanese. The declared objective of the exhibition was “to employ Saudi men and women.” Have you ever heard a better joke?
• The Saudi men and women queued up at the pavilions of the participating companies. They filled out the application forms, which were received and scrutinized by foreigners (Lebanese and Egyptians) who promised them imminent employment in their own countries. Another joke!
• One of the organizers of the exhibition confessed in a statement to local daily Al-Watan that his participation in the exhibition was only for publicity. He wanted to show that he was fulfilling his social responsibility at the expense of unemployed Saudis. A third joke!
• Concluding scene: a number of young Saudi men and women talked to the press in tones full of sadness and disappointment. They said for many years they have been filling out application forms and dreaming of work. They said every time they were told that an appointment was near but it never came.
• Before we close this curtain, I ask: Are we serious in our efforts to replace foreign workers with locals under our Saudization policy?
