For more than a month, two barangay trucks loaded with garbage have been parked in the same spot in barangay Sambag, Cebu City.
Idle and in disrepair, the trucks irritate residents with their bad odor.
The uncollected garbage in the village is one of the examples of Cebu City’s predicament.
Residents in Rallos street sitio San Roque barangay Sambag 1 were complaining of the bad smell from defective garbage trucks parked on the roadside for almost a year.
Since August, City Hall has exhausted its budget for tipping fees and private haulers to bring solid waste from the city’s 80 barangays to a private landfill in Consolacion town.
Residents in sitio San Roque, complain that collection in their area is only being done once a month since September.
Virgina Talledo said the accumulation of waste has left piles of awful smelling garbage.
Before September, she said, garbage in their area is collected three times a week — every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Fedila Gambuta, another resident, said that when they asked the garbage collectors what happened, they were told that the barangay’s dump trucks broke down and need repair.
Sambag 1 barangay captain Lemar Alcover told Cebu Daily News confirmed this.
Before the city’s budget ran out, he said 29 sitios were clustered to maximize garbage collection. But without the trucks, there’s no scheme to follow.
Alcover said he borrowed a truck from the Department of Public Services of City Hall but that this is not enough to cover the whole barangay.
Even before the truck finishes its route, it’s already full.
“Dili ma-accommodate gyud tanan sa usa ka adlaw. So mapundok siya,” he said.
Another problem is the transfer station as one dump truck is only allowed to dump up to 300 tons of garbage.
Barangay Sambag 1 hosts dormitories, apartments and restaurants, producing more than 300 tons.
While the City Council struggles to pass a supplemental budget for addtional funds for solid waste collection, the city’s 80 barangays have to fend for themselves.
Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella earlier asked the Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) to do their best to ensure that garbage collection is unhampered.
The City Council has yet to approve a proposed P2.8 billion supplemental budget 1 to answer for “urgent” needs.
This includes a P87 million outlay for the city’s garbage collection and disposal program.
Yesterday, the council again deferred the passage of SB1.