MMDA: Garbage collection is local gov’t job

MANILA, Philippines — Collecting garbage is the job of local government units (LGUs) and not the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, an MMDA official said yesterday.

Engineer Reynaldo Estiponia, acting director of the MMDA’s Solid Waste Management Office, told the House of Representatives committee on Metro Manila development headed by Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo that people should not blame the agency for the garbage littering the metropolis’ streets.

He said garbage disposal and segregation are not in the MMDA’s mandate – the agency’s function is to designate an area for a sanitary landfill where the LGUs can dump their garbage.

Estiponia estimated that about 56,052.37 cubic meters of garbage are thrown daily in Metro Manila and the national government has allotted P1.7 billion yearly for garbage collection and disposal to sanitary landfills.

Castelo – who will be replaced by his wife Precious Hipolito as he will be serving Quezon City as a councilor – also ordered a review of the solid waste disposal plan in Metro Manila.