After surprise check, Dubai's ruler orders doors to be removed from offices

Dubai: Last week, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ruler of Dubai, made headlines for forcing nine senior members of the administration into .retirement after he found offices empty during a surprise check. In a follow up move, the Sheikh, on Friday announced that he had ordered for doors and glass pane partitions to be removed from offices.

“I made a surprise visit to government departments and I was surprised to see a number of directors sitting behind closed doors. So I gave orders to remove all the doors,” Shaikh Mohammed said.

The move is being seen as an attempt by the Sheikh to get more young faces involved in administration.

In a major overhaul, Sheikh Mohammed last week forced nine high ranking officials to go into retirement.

He did this after making a surprise visit to the Department of Economic Development office and finding it entirely empty.

Videos uploaded by the government officials on Instagram showed the ruler wandering around in the deserted office, inspecting files and books abandoned on the table.

Officials and media claimed that the exercise was aimed at 'sending a message'.

Some of those laid off include Abdul Qader Al Jasmi, director of legal affairs, deputy director general Eisa Al Maidoor and assistant Director General for corporate support Mohammad Abdul Karim Julfar.

Thanking the nine retired officers for their services, the Sheikh said that he wanted to usher in a new generation of young leaders, handing them the reign to ensure delivery of quality services.

Al-Maktoum, who is known for his early morning visits, was also photographed waving to passers-by and locals on his visit to the government offices.

The ruler also made a visit to the airport, but thankfully found all the immigration officers in place.