The UQU College of Community Service and Continuing Education has held the closing ceremony of three training programs on communication skills with the public, coping with work pressure, and intellectual security. Held at Prince Faisal bin Fahad Auditorium in the UQU Abidia Campus, the ceremony was attended by the college dean, Dr. Hamed bin Saleh al-Rabee'i, and Makkah Police Director, Gen. Saeed bin Salim al-Garni.

Following a brief Quranic recitation at the beginning of the ceremony, The Commander of Security Patrols in Makkah, Col. Muhammad al-Seheimi, delivered an address affirming that communication skills with the public and coping with work pressure has become an indispensable necessity to keep pace with the generous, unstinting government support for Makkah: the destination of Muslims all over the world.

Such support, he said, has taken the form of a number of the giant projects for expansion of the Makkan Sanctuary (the Grand Mosque). He added: Such a comprehensive development based on the development of the place, should go in line with the development of the people inhabiting that place; of whom security man are but an integral part.

He went on to say, "With new concepts and developments emerging every day, intellectual securing has come to the fore as a central issue to pay attention to with the other security issues. In doing so, we are required to be aware of how open the world become, how the media has developed over the past years, how wicked hostility against the Kingdom has culminated, and how individuals are enlisted in an intellectual war after the confrontation has turned to be rather intellectual than military."

"To combine between the two tributaries of development: of man and place, constitutes the dream of HRH Prince Khaled al-Faisal, Governor of Makkah, and Advisor of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques," al-Seheimi said. He valued the support the security institutions receive from the Saudi Government. He also praised the training courses organized by the College of Community Service and Continuing Education.

For his part, the Dean of Community Service and Continuing Education College, Dr. Hamed bin Saleh al-Rabee'i, pointed out that organizing such training courses for our valorous security men came as part of national duty of the college, with the aim of bolstering their efficiency and capabilities that would help them assume their security responsibilities in the holiest place on earth.

He shed light on some of the intellectual fallacies adopted by hardliners, how to address them, and how to lay the foundation of a wise, rational mentality able to refute deviant views and ideologies. Intellectual security, he stressed, is deemed to be the cornerstone of security in its broad sense.

According to Dr. al-Rabee'i, participants of the course amounted to 1.000 security men. It was a phased program, consisting of three batches. The first batch included 400 participants, whereas the second and third batches included 300 participants each. Participants of the three batches were trained on communication skills with the public, coping with work pressure, and intellectual security. Al-Rabee'i lauded the fruitful cooperation with Makkah Police, as represented by the Security Patrols Department. He also thanked the UQU President, Dr. Bakri bin Maatooq Assas, for his continuing support and follow-up.

The Police Director of Makkah, Gen. Saeed bin Salim al-Garin, for his part, pointed out that those courses were held within the framework of a staunch belief in continuing education. "Learning is a life-long process," he emphasized, "man will still have to learn, no matter how learning he or she had."

He affirmed that he values the partnership with the universities and colleges organizing such specialized training courses aiming to improve the performance of employees, and reinforce security men with the immunity necessary to address and overcome the radical views that have become well ingrained in some society strata.

He mentioned that he intends to intensify training and hold more and more training courses over the upcoming period, with a view to ensuring our security men will be highly immune, as well as qualified to deal with the public. By doing so, the impression about security men will be improved, and their image will remain bright.

At last, he thanked Umm al-Qura University, and the College of Community Service and Continuing Education, for holding those training courses, and confirmed that he looks forward to more of such courses over the days to come.