'Hello, this is Sheikh Hamdan': Hero delivery rider gets call of a lifetime from Dubai Crown Prince

"Hello? This is Sheikh Hamdan.”

These were the first words of the Dubai Crown Prince as he personally called Pakistani expat Abdul Ghafoor Abdul Hakeem on Sunday. Abdul Ghafoor, a Talabat delivery rider, removed two fallen concrete bricks from a busy traffic junction, and someone posted a video of his heroic act online.

The video went viral and caught the attention of Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who sought help from his millions of social media followers to identify the Good Samaritan.

Khaleej Times reported last week how Abdul Ghafoor stopped his bike at the traffic junction in Al Quoz and ran to remove the two heavy concrete blocks.

“I could not believe my ears,” an elated Abdul Ghafoor told Khaleej Times moments after getting the call of his lifetime. He was out for a delivery when the call came. “The Dubai Crown Prince thanked me for what I had done. He also said that he was out of the country right now and promised he would meet me as soon as he was back.”

Earlier in the day, Sheikh Hamdan posted a Story on his Instagram account, hailing the rider’s quick thinking. Posting the viral video, Sheikh Hamdan said: “An act of goodness in Dubai to be praised. Can someone point me to this man?” A little later, he posted that the “good man” had been found. “Thank you, Abdul Ghafoor, you are one of a kind. We will meet soon!”

According to the Talabat rider, within minutes of Sheikh Hamdan posting the video, he got a call from the Dubai Police confirming his contact details and informing him that the Dubai Crown Prince would like to speak to him.

“To be honest, I’m still in disbelief that the Sheikh wanted to speak to a common man like me,” said Abdul Ghafoor. “He is really a great leader.”

In the viral video, the rider can be seen waiting at the junction as cars and trucks whizz past him. Once all the vehicles have passed, he put them in a safe place before returning to his bike.

Out to deliver an order that day, Abdul Hakeem realised the danger the fallen blocks posed when he saw a taxi driver almost lose control while driving over the brick. After removing the blocks, he went on to make his delivery on time.

Talabat rewarded his actions by giving him a ticket to fly back home so he could spend time with his son.

When asked when he would be travelling back to Pakistan, the rider said with a chuckle: ”Now I will go only after meeting the Sheikh.”

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