Ban on Dumping Banner Ignored as Trash Piles Up Again in Ciputat

Tangerang Selatan, Kompas.com – A pile of garbage on Jalan Pemuda, Ciputat, South Tangerang (Tangsel), persists despite a banner banning littering at the site being installed. The condition is complained of by traders because of the pungent odour and its impact on trading activity. Ana, 50, a clothing seller around the area, said the waste problem has actually been ongoing for a long time. However, in recent times the situation has become worse. ‘There’s a ban banner, it’s been there about a week. It has no effect. People still dump there,’ Ana told Kompas.com on Wednesday (4 March 2026). ‘Recently it’s really bad, reaching my stall. I even couldn’t sell for a week while waiting for it to be collected,’ she said. Ana has been selling at the site for 20 years. But only now have piles of uncollected rubbish been clearly seen near her stall, which is about 10 metres from the illegal dumping point. As a result, she was forced to close her stall for a week and lose income. ‘Usually I can sell fairly well in a day. When it’s busy I can move more than five pieces. But yesterday I didn’t sell at all for a week,’ she explained. Similar complaints were voiced by Hendri, 37, a fruit seller around the area. He said rubbish is often dumped by residents at dawn through to the morning, around 5:00 to 7:00 WIB. ‘So when we arrive, there is already rubbish,’ Hendri said. ‘Sometimes when we scold them, the person dumping gets angry. It’s a catch-22,’ he said. Hendri added that waste collection is usually done in the morning or late afternoon. However, in a short time the rubbish piles up again. ‘It has been collected, tomorrow there’s more. There are always people dumping despite the banner,’ he said. Therefore, in his view, simply putting up a ban banner is not enough to stop illegal dumping at the site. He hopes there will be monitoring or stronger action from the local government. ‘It seems that just words don’t work. There must be someone to guard or take firm action,’ he said. Meanwhile, Kompas.com has attempted to contact the Acting Head of the Tangerang Selatan City Environment Agency (DLH), Bani Khosyatullah, for a response regarding the pile of rubbish. As of this report, the person concerned has not yet responded.