Rubbish Under Tanjung Priok Toll Road Piles Up Again, Despite Recent Clean-Up Before Ramadan

JAKARTA - Rubbish at the temporary storage site (TPS) Kencana in Sungai Bambu, Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, has piled up again despite being cleaned in February. Resident Suyitno (50) stated that the previous clean-up effort still left considerable rubbish under the Wiyoto Wiyono toll road. “At the start of Ramadan last month, the Metro Jaya Police Chief organised a clean-up here. Even when the Police Chief visited, it wasn’t fully sorted. It wasn’t neat; there was still leftover rubbish,” Suyitno told Kompas.com at the location. “We asked the traffic unit chief and the environmental department head to please clear out the rubbish inside first. This pile is as big as four to five large trucks,” he added. However, the waste collection fleet previously available has been redirected to TPS Waduk Cincin and Sunter. “We should have been assisted with excavator compactors here. There are only two compactors, but our five trucks were redirected to Waduk Cincin,” he said. The heavy equipment needed to tidy the rubbish piles is also no longer at the site. “Even if there are many trucks, this equipment should be on standby here. Why? To tidy the rubbish into the piles because this is a main road. Why was it redirected there?” he questioned. In agreement, Nur (55), a trader in the area, said the rubbish at the TPS never truly disappears and keeps accumulating. “We’re traders too; it affects us. People avoid drinking coffee or hanging around,” she said. According to her, waste handling at the site is only addressed when it becomes a public spotlight. “When it goes viral, it gets cleaned. It has to go viral first, that’s why we make it viral,” Nur added.