Dh4,000 fine if caught pasting bills illegally in Sharjah

Sharjah - Practice of sticking posters, bills and stickers on building walls continue across prominent places in the city.

It's everywhere. In any busy place in the city, you will find black and white printouts, colour stickers or posters pasted on the walls of public and private buildings, lampposts, telephone booths and wherever possible. These bills advertise every service - legal and illegal - from bed space or rooms for rent to massage services.
Despite a ban and continuous efforts made by the Sharjah Municipality to maintain the aesthetic beauty of the emirate, the practice of sticking posters, bills and stickers on building walls continue across prominent places in the city. 
The violators stick bills for ads such as sharing of bed spaces and rooms, home tuitions, car lifts and many other unauthorised and unlicensed services. During a tour around the city targeting such illegal practices, Khaleej Times found many bills promoting illegal health services and body massage and those offering herbal solutions for diabetes, cancer and even sexual problems.
Municipality takes tough measures
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Mohammed Al Kaabi, head of the cleanliness section at the Sharjah Municipality, said he is quite concerned about the practice of people sticking posters on the walls of buildings, including mosques. "The practice spoils the beauty of the buildings, public parks and other areas in the emirate. It is annoying to see buildings and towers defiled with graffiti, stickers, bills and posters."
He added that the emirate prides itself for its architectural heritage and wants the buildings and towers to enhance its beauty. The municipality is trying to promote a positive image of the emirate and launched campaigns to increase awareness among the residents about the ways to keep the emirate clean.
The municipality has recently intensified the inspection campaigns to curb the unauthorised advertisements. During the last four months, the inspectors caught 32 people sticking bills on the walls. He added that the municipality was able to remove thousands of posters and stickers on signboards, walls, lampposts and bridges to maintain the general appearance of the city.
"Most of the bills removed were those promoting bed spaces or rooms for rent, which falls under subletting. That is considered a serious violation of the rental regulations in the emirate. Some other posters promote services such as massage in other emirates as it is not allowed in Sharjah. The municipality notifies the Sharjah Department of Economic Development (SEDD) to deal with such issues by communicating with their counterparts in other emirates," he said.
Al Kaabi said that the municipality would continue its inspection targeting the violators. "We will not let anybody those who are found sticking bills and stickers on walls go free. The violators will face Dh4,000 fine." He pointed out that the municipality is working according to a plan to eliminate such disturbing and harmful practices.
"We have formed teams of efficient inspectors who drive around the city to monitor these practices, which mostly concentrate in Rolla, Al Nahda, Al Qasimiya and Arouba commercial and residential areas."
Al Kaabi urged residents not to respond to these ads as most of them could cause troubles. "These are unauthorised advertisements and have no credibility or accountability. Residents can cooperate with the municipality to curb such practices by reporting it by contacting the municipality's hotline number 993," added Al Kaabi.
afkarali@khaleejtimes.com

• Sharjah