I want to highlight a serious issue that began during Ramadan in the Al Muroor area in Abu Dhabi. We’ve been living in the area for five years and there is a public park near our house. Until a few years ago, there was no issue in the park and we could play there calmly. But now, some young boys have started spilling vegetable oil on the floor of the park. They do this shameful act only to enjoy drifting with their bicycles. These boys are very ill-tempered and their behaviour is becoming an issue.
Firstly, it is a dangerous and disturbing act to spill oil in a place where people jog, play and walk regularly. Additionally, they are doing this just for the reckless cause of drifting on their bicycles. It is not only harmful to them but also the others.
A few days ago, a child fell down while playing because he slipped on the oily patch and got minor injuries. The oil also has a bad smell, which also disturbs the passersby.
When I discussed this issue with the park keepers, they replied that they were also disturbed by this act. I also spoke to the municipal cleaners who said that they clean the place every day, but the next day the oil spill appears again. The cleaners are unhappy with this situation and want the boys to stop this habit, but all their efforts go in vain. They told me that they tried to explain to the boys to stop this act, but they behaved rudely in return.
The municipal employees visit the park every morning for inspection, but they have not taken any action since the issue began either. They are silent about this cause, but the whole community is very disturbed by this.
I request the Abu Dhabi Municipality to perform any action to avoid this from happening in the future.
— The reader is a student based in Abu Dhabi.
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Editor’s note: The reader’s concerns were raised with the management of Abu Dhabi Municipality. However, despite repeated reminders, they failed to respond.
