Umm Al Quwain issues 872 tickets to shops for offences

The Department of Economic Development (DED) in Umm Al Quwain issued 872 tickets and warning letters to erring shops in the emirate in the first ten months of the year.
Mansur Sultan Al Kharji, director of the department, said the tickets and warning letters were issued by the staff inspectors of both the inspection and consumer protection sections of DED.
"Fines ranging from Dh200 to Dh2,000 have been imposed on only those shops that were caught repeating the offence after being warned," Al Kharji said.
Some shops that ignored the department's warning letters, are the ones that have been stringently penalised, he added. "Some shops also faced partial or permanent closure are enforced as per the nature of the violation detected."
One of the main violations were shops operating without the valid licences required for distributing or storing goods.
Other violations reported included placing vehicles for sale on roads, failure to renew expired licenses, selling expired goods and items of unknown origins, Al Kharji said.
Warning, he said inspection campaigns will be increased day and night to curb any violation that may pose a risk to the health of the consumers. "Recently DED ordered to shut down a shop for selling sweets wrapped in packets with derogatory words, and illegally covered with logos of the UAE national day."
"Most of the violations spotted were related to uncleanliness, keeping staff with no health cards, employing workers under the sponsorship of other employers, selling expired products and items of unknown sources, manipulation of validity dates, and, prescribing and selling smuggled medicines," Al Kharji said.
The department shall show zero tolerance with any violation that poses a risk to consumers' health, he warned. "Temporary and permanent closure, and hefty fines shall be imposed on erring shopkeepers," he added.
Urging cooperation, he said the public may report any violation they come across to the department office located on the Shaikh Ahmed Al Mualla road.
ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com

• UAE
• Umm Al Quwain