EDITORIAL - Trash problem

Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella has brushed aside fears of a looming garbage crisis in the city following the expiration of the contract with a private hauler today as the local government is now in the process of rebidding the cancelled garbage disposal contract.

Labella said he is calling for a meeting with all barangay captains in the city next week to discuss the disposal of waste. The Department of Public Services has asked the public to put out garbage in the streets only during the scheduled collection.

“There is really no problem with our garbage collection. In fact, we have friends who committed to help the city government continue the collection in the meantime that we are still on the bidding process. Even Ayala committed to help,” the mayor said.

Now, in the absence of a contractor hauling garbage, many expect a problem to arise regarding the city’s trash disposal. With the contract with Jomara Konstruckt Corp. now ended, who will continue to collect the city’s garbage?

Jomara had been contracted by the previous administration to haul garbage from the city’s transfer station in Barangay Inayawan to any landfill. Now that its contract with the city has ended, unless City Hall rebids the P65-million garbage collection contract, a trash crisis is really inevitable.

What Labella should do is push for the immediate rebidding of the contract, which was earlier entered into by the city and the ARN Central Waste Management Inc. but cancelled because of legal and environmental issues.

The city government should not wait for the trash to pile up because no firm has been contracted to pick it from the transfer station. Lest the city government forgets, garbage is one of the issues that Labella promised to address during his campaign for the city’s highest position during the last elections.