The cast members of a famous YouTube comedy show launched by expats were recently honored by Salman Al-Yahya, director-general of the Passport Department, in appreciation of their rendition of a videoclip depicting the country’s ongoing labor raids.

The song, entitled “Ja Jawazat” (Arabic for “passport control is here”) has garnered three million views on YouTube.

The “Khalli Walli” crew is a group of young Pakistanis living in the Kingdom who created the YouTube show in a bid to shed light on social problems facing the Kingdom’s residents. The show is licensed by the Ministry of Culture and Information.

Al-Yahya congratulated the group on successfully raising awareness about the country’s ongoing labor campaign.

The comic act depicts the recent grace period given to expats to legalize their residency status.

A Pakistani expat fiddles with a satellite dish, only to notice a policeman in the distance, prompting him to warn his illegal fellow expats to run for cover.

“Al-Yahya expressed appreciation for our show and said that the department is looking forward to supporting us in other such upcoming projects,” Ghaffar Khan, one of the cast members and project coordinator, told Arab News on Tuesday. “He said he wants the ‘Khalli Walli’ show to make more videos about the Passport Department.”

“The Passport Department has become famous among expats, who have since become better acquainted with labor rules,” he said. “Each show member has been awarded certificates of appreciation. A collective golden shield was also given to the show.”

“Al-Yahya told us that the show is the only non-Saudi show to be honored by the Passport Department,” he said.

Faez Chaudary, director and founder of the show, was honored, in addition to other show cast members and characters, including Sahir G, Zaa Khan, Omer Khalid, Billal Arshad, Ali Jamshed, Jahanzaib Ijaz Qureshi and Fawaz Chaudhary.

Al-Yahya also said that 100 copies of the song were distributed by the Passport Department during the famous Janadriyah festival.