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Dubai honours honest Pakistani cleaner

Dubai - Ali has been working for a company in UAE since 2013 and is the sole bread winner for his family.

A Pakistani cleaner in Dubai, who was hailed as honest after returning a bag containing 15kg gold, has brushed off praises he's been garnering. Speaking to Khaleej Times a day after the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) honoured him, Taher Ali, 27, said "honesty is the biggest wealth".
"You cannot buy honesty even with one crore rupees. Wealth is not permanent; it is with you today and tomorrow it belongs to someone else," said Ali. The gold he found was worth Dh7 million.
According to the expat, his father's advice not to earn anything through dishonest means rang in his mind when he opened the bag and found solid gold bars inside. "I had no clue the bag contained gold. I thought it would be tools or something when I spotted it in a corner. I informed the security guard and returned the bag without thinking twice."
Ali was on night duty when he found the bag at the parking facility in Al Sabkha area earlier this month. Nobody has claimed the bag yet.
The expat, who hails from the Chakri village in Sialkot, said congratulations are pouring in from his family members after he posted about the incident on his Facebook page.
"When I told my father, he said I did the right thing and congratulated me. That meant a lot to me."
Ali has been working for the company since 2013 and is the sole bread winner for his family. "I came to Dubai to support my family and my father, who is not well. I do not have big dreams except to build a proper house for my family."
anjana@khaleejtimes.com