Something stinks in Estrada's hometown

There is one hell of a stink in Metro Manila, and even President Estrada’s hometown has not been spared.

Three days after the closure of the San Mateo landfill, dumpsite for much of Metro Manila’s garbage, even the muni-cipality of San Juan reeks of trash.

Residents in this municipality, where Mr. Estrada’s son Jinggoy is mayor, have to cover their noses while passing by Blumentritt street corner N. Domingo street, particularly by the Agora complex.

Piles of garbage tower on these two busy streets, which are a stone’s throw away from the municipal hall.

This eyesore mocks assurances made earlier by Presidential Flagship Programs and Projects chief Ro-bert Aventajado, who also chairs the Greater Metro Manila Solid Waste Management Committee (GMMSWMC), that garbage would not be left rotting on the streets.

"Apparently, our Mayor (Jinggoy) had overlooked the problem on garbage disposal in our town because he himself is also busy looking for the best alibi to counter the allegations against his father and other members of the first family in connection with the juetenggate scanda," a San Juan resident told The STAR.

The President is facing the biggest trial of his life after Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis "Chavit" Singson accused him of receiving hundreds of millions of pesos in jueteng money and taking kickbacks from tobacco excise taxes.

The San Mateo sanitary landfill closed operations last Dec. 31, leaving Metro Manila local officials, the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) headed by Chairman Jejomar Binay and the GMMSWMC no other alternative but to dump an estimated 6,000 to 8,000 metric tons of garbage in the metropolis.

It’s a reality you can’t miss. – Jose Rodel Clapano