COVID-19: Riyadh tops list for rule violations in Saudi Arabia

Abu Dhabi: Some 15,700 people were booked for failing to abide by the precautionary and preventive protocols against COVID-19 across saudi Arabia in the last week, the Ministry of Interior said.

The statistics showed that Riyadh topped the list of violations with 5,056, followed by Mecca with 2,544 violations, then Al Qassim with 1,970 violations, Al Jouf, 1,447 violations, and Al Sharqiya, 1,002 violations.

Preventive protocols

The maximum permissible limit in family and non-family gatherings, inside homes, rest houses or farms, or in social events such as funerals, parties, and the like, is 50 people. The penalty for non-compliance by private sector businesses with the precautionary and preventive protocols is SR10,000.

The Ministry of Interior stressed that citizens and residents must continue to adhere to the preventive measures and abide by the instructions issued by the authorities in this regard.

Violations include holding gatherings, moving between work areas without cleaning hands, handshaking, not complying with social distancing, not complying with temperature checks, failing to wear face masks, not using paper cups, attending work with a suspected infection or having COVID-19 symptoms, as well as many others.

For civil servants, the consequence of a first offence and any subsequent offences differ, with the consequences being more severe for those senior employees of a particular grade and above.

Sanctions vary from notice, deduction in salary, withholding of a periodic bonus, to a legal penalty.