Doha - Lack of civic amenities and jobs in remote areas of Qatar are driving residents away into Doha. The city is becoming more and more crowded and pressure on its limited infrastructure is increasing.
There are just three schools and one primary health centre for a cluster of villages along the Doha-Abu Samra road, said Naif Ali Al Ahbabi.
He is contesting the April 1 Central Municipal Council (CMC) election and is a resident of a village (Al Amriya) which is more than 75 kilometers away from Doha, off the Abu Samra highway.
Al Ahbabi is a candidate from the large Abu Hamour constituency, which includes a number of villages, aside from the main Abu Hamour locality on the outskirts of Doha.
He works with the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Agriculture (MMAA) and commutes five days a week to work from his village. "There are about 400 to 500 Qatari families living in our village," he told The Peninsula in an interview yesterday.
Living in the villages is not as expensive as it is here in Doha, but life is difficult because of a severe lack of basic infrastructure. There are just three schools for a number of villages in our area.
And there is only one primary health centre and it is in Al Qarana. "So, if we fall ill, we have to either go there or come driving 100 km to Doha," he said.
"This health centre is open only from 8am until 11am, so if you take ill after that you have to come all the way to Doha. There is no option. We need a bigger health centre and one which is open 24 hours," he said.
There are no job opportunities either, so families are forced to flee these areas and come to Doha, pushing the prices of real estate and everything else up. The migration from the villages cannot be checked unless enough jobs are created and basic amenities are provided in these places.
Talking of existing employment opportunities, he said there is a customs check post in Abu Samra, a small municipal office and two small police stations in the entire region.
This is the first time Al Ahbabi is fighting an election and is promising the electorate to take up these issues if he wins.
There are no public parks in the entire region where he comes from, he said. "I am in the fray because I want to highlight these issues and do something concrete for the people from my constituency."
However, canvassing in this particular constituency is very challenging due to its sheer size. "Ain Khalid, Al Qarana, Raudat Rashid, Abu Samra, Al Sidra, Assailiya and Abu Nakhla are all part of my constituency. It's a huge area, but I am determined to cover it to drum up support," said Al Ahbabi.
© The Peninsula 2007
