MORE NEWS, BAGUIO CITY

Baguio execs agree to stop garbage tiff, pay hauling services
By Dexter A See

BAGUIO CITY — After engaging in a heated debate on the worsening garbage crisis, city officials agreed to get their acts together and approved the allocation of sufficient funds to pay the city’s obligations to private haulers.

The office of the mayor earlier contracted the services of the private haulers to clean the city of garbage that has piled up on the streets.

The haulers transported the trash to a sanitary landfill in Capas, Tarlac.
Metro Waste Management Corp. has not been paid of its hauling services from July 23 to 31 amounting to almost P5 million.

Earlier, the city council approved the allocation of P10 million from the city’s unappropriated surplus fund for payment of services of the private haulers, who included local contractors, services to be paid should starting on Aug. 1.

However, fiscal officers told local legislators the city’s worsening garbage crisis could be considered an emergency, and this justified hiring of Metro Waste.

Because of the exigency of the situation, they said, there was urgent need for immediate appropriation of funds for the purpose.

The councilors said they would be liable for graft if they approve the allocation for the payment of Metro Waste noting its services were contracted without regular government bidding.
This prompted them to defer action on the request of the city’s chief executive to appropriate funds for the garbage-hauling services.

The disagreement among local officials over how to solve the garbage problem has resulted in the continuous dumping of garbage in streets all over the city.

The situation caused fears of outbreak of diseases in the city.

The city’s garbage problem plagues the city for over one month now. The crisis loomed after residents barricaded the Irisan open dumpsite, preventing the city government from dumping tons of garbage at the area.

The protesting residents said the situation at the Irisan dump site has become dangerous, noting that the retaining walls have developed cracks and could collapse anytime.

Since July 14, when the Irisan dumpsite was effectively closed by the protesting residents, the city officials have never gotten their acts together in the efforts to find a permanent solution to the problem.

This was traced to the alleged political differences between the city mayor and most of the councilors.

Mayor Reinaldo A. Bautista Jr. had requested the appropriation of at least P50 million from the city’s funds to solve the city’s garbage problem but the council deferred action on the matter, pending submission of a definite action plan.

Although the council agreed to pay the services rendered by Metro Waste, some councilors said it was not automatic they will also approved the P50-million allocation because the city’s solid waste management board should come out with a definite action plan on how the funds would be spent.


Five drug traffickers nabbed in Baguio bust

BAGUIO CITY – Five illegal drug couriers including a teenager from Maguindanao were nabbed last week by agents of the regional Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.

Senior Police Officer 4 Romeo Abordo, team leader of PDEA-Special Operations Group told newsmen the 17-year-old Maguindanaoan courier who boarded a Victory Liner bus from Cavite was caught around 2:30 a.m. Aug. 25.

Confiscated from him were two heat sealed transparent sachets containing five-grams each of shabu with market value around P100,000 for the 10 grams.

The 17-year-old told police he was asked by his brother to bring the shabu to Baguio to sell it.
Night August 24, four other drug pushers were also caught during a buy-bust operation at Lower Gibraltar, Pacdal here with four small plastic sachets containing 0.40 grams of shabu pegged at P2,400 in their possession.

Police identified the alleged drug pushers as Joel Balasio Fallorin, 31, from Tuding, Itogon town in Benguet; Mary Jane Fernandez Espiritu,21, of Labrador town, Pangasinan; Jordan Luther Abuan Managdag, 23, of Puguis, La Trinidad town, Benguet and Benjamin Gutierrez Abalos, 34, in Mabini St. in Baguio City.

All were indicted for illegal drugs except the 17-year-old Maguindanaoan who was temporarily handed over to Social Welfare officials.

All the suspects were detained at the city jail.