Cucumber and Durians

Some background knowledge first.

In Qtar, it is a serious offence if your issued cheque is bounced. You may go to jail for it and a heavy fine will be imposed. And believe me, this has happened before. The same goes to if you are the one who authorised a company's cheque and the cheque is bounced, your head will be chopped first. Pun not intended.

So be very careful when you are issuing any cheque. make sure you have a sufficient fund in the bank.

Just to let you know also, to rent a house in Qtar, you usually have to give a post dated cheques to about 12 or 24 of them depending on the number of years your contract is. So if you rent a house for 2 years, you have to issue 24 post dated cheques in the name of the landlord.

This has been going on okay ever since I got here.

Except that just a few days ago (10th May 2010 to be exact), the smart people in this country has legislated a law that for any cheques that is banked in before the issued date will be paid on the date it is presented. Yaani if a bank is presented with a cheque which has been issued on a post dated dates, the holder of the cheque can cash it immediately and not abide by the dates of the cheque intended to be issued.

So imagine, if you rent a house with an average rental of QR12k per month for 2 years. You will have to issue 24 cheques in the total amount of QR288k.

And if the landlord has no mercy to the new tenant and just cash in the cheques, while the tenant do not have sufficient funds in the bank, the tenant is at risk of going to jail with big hefty fines and don't know what else imposed on him.

The banks, being the understanding capitalist that they are, advise their customers
1. to take up a loan to equivalent amount of the cheques issued to cover the cost of just in case. OR
2. to talk nicely to the landlord not to cash in the cheques all at a time.

I don't know whether to cry or laugh at these suggestions.

Everyone who is renting a house is at risk here in Qtar, for all of us have no choice but to present post dated cheques + deposit to secure a house.

We are moving out of the current house we are living in at the moment and just signed up a contract for a new house. We have also issued 24+1 cheques (plus deposit). We do not have sufficient funds in the bank in the case that the landlord intends to cash all of those cheques.

This is clearly a law that protects one side of the party. And the cucumber will continuously be shred to pieces by the durian all over him.

May Allah help us.