CEBU City’s Department of Public Services (DPS) has assured that Pasajero Motor Corp. (Pamocor) will have all the garbage deposited at the transfer station in Barangay Inayawan hauled to the private landfill in Consolacion by the end of the week.
DPS head Roberto Cabarubias said that Pamocor has augmented its equipment by adding three backhoes and 50 trucks to hasten the hauling of trash and avoid build-up.
“They’ve committed to solve the problem by the end of the week. They’re still in an adjustment period but we can see that the situation is slowly being normalized,” he said.
Around 8,000 tons of garbage were deposited at the transfer station during the days when the City Government had yet to hire a service provider.
It was only last June 6 when Pamocor received their notice to proceed and started hauling the City’s waste after they won the bidding for the City’s garbage disposal program. The previous service provider ended their contract with the City last May 23.
Because of this, garbage started building up in the temporary storage, prompting Councilor Joel Garganera to raise concerns.
Garganera said it already looks like a landfill and asked the Environmental Management Bureau 7 to check the private facility.
In an earlier interview, DPS assistant head John Paul Gelasque said that the truck ban implemented in Mandaue City also contributes to the inefficient hauling of the garbage since truck drivers of Pamocor will have to wait for hours before they can resume the dumping of garbage.
Mandaue City implements truck ban from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
He said Pamocor is already doing 40 trips per day to dispose of the garbage at the transfer station.
“We are constantly monitoring them to make sure that they can haul the garbage that were deposited there earlier while they also work on the daily collected garbage,” Gelasque said.
Sought for comment, Mayor Tomas Osmeña said Garganera may just be “promoting his own political agenda.”
“His body language all throughout these months is that he’s trying to go to the landfill in Consolacion. I think he might have a financial interest there. He’s trying to promote his own political agenda against the better interest of the people,” he said.