Twenty Three years after RA 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 was passed, the Local Government of Olongapo and some of its residents still fails to reduce, re-use and recycle, the basic fundamentals why the law was created.
Olongapo residents are blaming the Environmental Sanitation and Management Office (ESMO) for the uncollected, fly-swarming, maggots crawling, foul smelling garbage strewn all over the streets.
People keeps on blaming the government for these failed collection and segregation even hurling invectives on Social Media. Sure, the LGU has some of its lapses, starting from it’s lack of foresight on how to implement the law.
But why only now, twenty three years after? But even after two decades ago, the city is still scrambling, rushing to implement it for fear of the sanctions to be imposed by the DENR, the lead national agency to go after LGU’s who do not comply with it.
The sanctions vary from suspension to facing charges that can lead to dismissal of the Official concerned.
From what I heard, the City’s answer to the growing woes, will br allocating millions of pesos for the purchase of more garbage trucks. But will it really solve the problem?
The problem lies with the lack of political will from the government side and the lack of responsibility on the residents side. It should go hand in hand.
