Residents furious over Sutiyoso's incompetence

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

While Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso panicked over where to dump the city's garbage after the closure of the Bantar Gebang dump site in Bekasi, people were furious over the incompetence of the city administration in handling the issue.

"I pay fees to the subdistrict office for it to dispose of my household garbage regularly, so it must take it away," said Susilawati, a resident of Mampang, South Jakarta.

To pay for their garbage to be disposed, residents in the area had to pay Rp 3,000 to Rp 15,000 per month, according to Susilawati.

She complained about the garbage in the neighborhood, which had not been disposed of since Monday. A subdistrict worker had piled garbage from the densely populated neighborhood on the sidewalks.

"Where should we dump our garbage? There is no open space here," Susilawati asserted, adding that her neighborhood was packed with houses.

Susilawati's opinion was supported by her neighbor, Parlin. He complained about the pile of garbage, which had started to decompose and pollute the neighborhood with its bad smell.

"The decomposed garbage attracts flies and is also a source of bacteria. I'm afraid it might cause contagious diseases here," he said.

Apart from the threat of disease, garbage left in the area would also detract from the amenity of the neighborhood, said Parlin.

"How come the administration has failed to manage the garbage? What have they done all this time?"

Parlin had heard that the Bekasi administration had closed down the Bantar Gebang site. However, he insisted that the city administration had to take responsibility for the consequences.

"I don't care about the problem. I always fulfill my obligations as a resident here (by paying taxes and fees), so the city administration must then do the same," he insisted.

Parjo, a resident of Kosambi, West Jakarta, said that garbage in his neighborhood had not been taken away even though he had paid Rp 10,000 for its disposal and a security fee to the subdistrict office.

"On my way to the office, I always carry a bag of trash and dispose of it on vacant land near where I live," he said.

He did not know who owned the land. "What I do know is that my neighbors also dump their household garbage there."

It had not occurred to him to burn the garbage, as suggested by Sutiyoso.

"My house is small. Where can I burn it? Besides, it is dangerous for the children and harmful to both the environment and our health as well," said the man, who has four children.

Meanwhile, Pasar Minggu market in South Jakarta looked dirty due to accumulated piles of garbage at several places. Some vendors there had collected their garbage and placed it at the roadside.

"We have to do that because the workers who usually collect it said they could not take it away," said Main, a fruit seller.

According to Main, each vendor had to pay Rp 1,000 daily for the trash produced. Several workers usually collected the waste and put it in a garbage bin nearby the market. Workers from the City Sanitation Agency would then take the garbage to the final dump.

"If this situation persists, perhaps garbage will overflow into the roads as well," he said, adding that he put the garbage at the roadside because there was no other suitable place in the area for it.