• Home
• /
• UAE

Sharjah bans street promoters

Sharjah - Irritated customers complain; Dh500 fine set for erring outlets

The Sharjah Municipality has banned shopkeepers from allowing promoters calling out and wooing customers and passersby into their shops. Errant commercial outlets and shops will have to pay Dh500 as fine, which will be doubled in case of repetition.
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Abdullah Ibrahim Hassan, Head of the Central Markets section at Sharjah Municipality, said the practice has been banned due to complaints from customers who were annoyed, frustrated and disturbed.
Shoppers who approach the markets already have an idea about where they are going and what they want to buy.
These promoters irritate passersby and shoppers and force them to enter shops to see their goods. Often shop owners themselves undertake the task, but in some cases they even hire people to call out to customers and shoppers, for which they are paid 10 per cent of the purchase amount.
Sharjah Municipality, in coordination with the departments concerned, found that the middlemen who stand on the streets to woo shoppers are illegal and jobless.
They only earn for their daily survival, forcing the municipality to ban the practice. The police have arrested all such people found in the markets.
The municipality is also working to make sure all workers and shopkeepers have ID cards that prove they are working legally. They will have to wear the card and keep it displayed during inspection time.
Ibrahim Al Rayees, Director of Municipal Safety and Inspection said the municipality is keen to ensure stability, safety and peace in the market for the residents of Sharjah. The municipality is intensifying inspection in the markets in two shifts to ensure that shops and outlets are following all regulations. Following the ban, the municipality is also spreading awareness among shops and shoppers in the market about the illegal practice. Awareness pamphlets have been distributed to notify the public about the ban and the penalties. Hefty fines will also be issued on those caught violating the ban.
Al Rayees urged the public to call 993, the 24-hour emergency team that will send the inspectors to investigate the violation, to report any such kind of illegal practices.
afkarali@khaleejtimes.com