Inayawan village chief files charges against Cebu City officials for uncollected garbage

Uncollected garbage in Barangay Inayawan in Cebu City since mid-December 2020.

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Inayawan Barangay Captain Kirk Bryan Repollo has filed charges of gross neglect of duty against Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella and Department of Public Services (DPS) head, Lawyer John Jigo Dacua,  for failing to collect the garbage in his barangay since mid-December 2020.

Repollo said in his affidavit that the barangay was not informed that the contract between the city government and the private hauler managing the transfer station in the barangay has ended.

Inayawan has been the location for the already closed landfill and the garbage transfer station for years.

Since the second week of December 2020, the garbage in the barangay has not been collected by the city’s DPS, Repollo alleged. The barangay has been using its three trucks accomodating up to three tons to collect the residents’ garbage.

The village chief said the barangay’s trucks cannot collect all garbage in the barangay because the travel time for each truck going to the dumping area at a private facility in Barangay Binaliw takes three hours per truck.

“With the status quo on garbage disposal, the Cebu City Government and its Department of Public Services (DPS) had not been giving assistance to Barangay Inayawan in its garbage collection,” said Repollo.

The failure of the city government has become detrimental to the environment in the barangay and the health of the residents as well.

Repollo filed charges of Gross Negligence of Duty in relation to the Solid Waste Management Act at the Office of the Ombudsman against the city officials on January 7, 2021.

“This only shows incompetency, inefficiency, and inefficacy of the Cebu City Government and of the City’s DPS in addressing the garbage problems of Cebu City,” said the village chief.

He noted that the city government has the responsibility of coming up with an efficient waste management plan and ensure its implementation.

He also mentioned that the Commission on Audit (COA) already noticed the lack of a Ten Year Solid Waste Management Plan of the city that should have been approved by the National Solid Waste Management Commission.

Repollo is hoping that the Ombudsman would find grounds in the charges he filed and give justice to the sufferings of the residents.

Dacua, for his part, refused to comment on the case saying he has not received the complaint yet and will await a copy from the Office of the Ombudsman.

Mayor Labella has not yet commented on the issue as well. /rcg