General Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Minister of Defense, has honored six employees of the Emergency Office of the Dubai Municipality.
The gesture came in recognition of the role they played in attending to and following up inquiries and complaints from the public on various civic services as well as other public utilities.
On behalf of Qassim Sultan, Director General of Dubai Municipality, Obeid Salem Al Shamsi, Assistant Director General for Administrative and General Services Affairs, handed out the special gifts from Sheikh Mohammed as well as certificates and cash awards from the Municipality to the five employees of the Emergency office and also to Atif Abdel Rahim Abdalla, Head of the Communication and Information Unit at the Administrative Affairs Department, who is also in charge of the Emergency Office, according to Gulf News.
The employees were especially handpicked by Sheikh Mohammed for their exceptional performance throughout the past years.
The other five employees were Mohammed Kamil Wafa, Mohammed Samy Al Syed, Atif Abdul Qadir, Mohammed Abdul Rahman, and Mohammed Al Syed Makawi.
"This recognition puts more responsibilities on the shoulders of the employees to enhance their performance further," Al Shamsi said.
He pointed out that the honor from Sheikh Mohammed is for all the municipality staff. Al Shamsi expressed, "The Emergency staff are the people who are in constant touch with the public, and their approach to the public reflects very much on the image of the Municipality."
The Emergency Office operates 24 hours a day to receive comments, inquiries, complaints and suggestions with regards to the services provided by the Dubai Municipality.
It receives calls on a wide range of issues ranging from traffic light faults, street lights, pest control, public transport, stray animals, services of public markets and abattoirs, sea oil spills, inquiries about night duty pharmacies, trees that obstruct vision of public roads, different types of waste, debris, waste left on the roads as a result of accidents, leakage of sewerage and irrigation, food poisoning, expired food or drink in the markets, accidents on building construction sites, veterinary services, beggars and unauthorized auto cleaners in public areas.
Abdalla noted that "An honor from the higher leadership is also an honor for the effort we have taken to serve the public in the best possible way."
He added that the Emergency staff would be given an intensive training this year in the area of behavioral skills and improving their English language skills.
"After long years of service, this honor gives me pleasure and reminds me to improve my performance further," said Kamil, who has been serving the Emergency Office for the past 23 years.
Samy, who also completed 23 years, said that he has always been keen to enrich the Dubai’s image whenever he attends to any calls.
It should be noted that the same employees were honored by the Municipality in 1999 for their excellent performance.
The Emergency Office, which operates in three shifts a day, attends an average of 300 calls per day, which includes 50 complaints. Apart from calling 04-2232323, the public can also contact the Emergency Office through fax 04-2222339 or email emergency@dm.gov.ae.
