Issa Al-Hulayan Okaz The main story on the front page of Al-Madinah Newspaper last week was that: “77,000 government jobs are occupied by expatriates”. This is a clear indication that there is now a sensitivity about expatriates which did not exist before. There is a common belief among citizens that every job filled by an expatriate is the right of a Saudi, not on the basis of quality and competence, but based on identity and citizenship. A job is an opportunity for a monthly salary that can be obtained by an educational certificate and a Saudi identity card. Competence and qualification, which are the prerequisite for any job in all places and at all times, have disappeared for more than 40 years and it seems like they are never coming back. These jobs include 55,000 in the Ministry of Health. It would be much better to distribute them among Saudis by a draw, regardless of their qualifications or specializations. They are Saudi citizens and that is enough. Because they possessed a certificate and a Saudi ID, many male and female nurses were appointed at the Ministry of Health. The end result was a real health disaster. When education was the responsibility of what we now call expatriates, it was advanced and developed. It constituted a strong base for development which was less costly. Secondary school graduates of that time are more qualified than university graduates today. They were more knowledgeable and cultured. Citizenship should not be the basis for job Saudization. This simple fact is not being considered these days. In a civilized world, there is no problem with qualified foreigners who are competent in their fields of work taking positions that are more senior than those held by citizens. Qualified foreigners are being recruited by universities, hospitals and big companies. No citizen has objected to the fact that these qualified foreigners are being paid more than Saudi nationals. Nationality alone is not sufficient justification for high pay.
