Cabanlas backs contract termination with Tencil, Jomara over lanfill issues

COUNCILOR Edgar Cabanlas supported the recommendation of the City Local Environment and Natural Resources Office (CLENRO) to terminate the city’s contract with Tencil Construction Inc. and Jomara Konstruckt Corp., citing violations and inefficiencies in the operation and maintenance of the Sanitary Landfill in Barangay Pagalungan.

During the recent regular session, Cabanlas amended the proposal of Councilor Eric Salcedo to terminate Jomara’s and Tencil’s contract, citing it is not within the scope of the Sanggunian. He suggested instead that the City Council expressed support for CLENRO’s contract termination recommendation now pending review by the City Legal Office (CLO).

“The purpose of the resolution is not to terminate, but to support CLENRO’s action. The mayor already received the recommendation and endorsed it to the CLO for legal opinion,” he said.

Meanwhile, the majority floor leader also questioned the current location of the city’s engineered sanitary landfill in Pagalungan, noting its proximity to a river may influence water quality.

“The basic flaw is the landfill itself. It should not be there. It affects water quality,” he added.

Cabanlas said the access road to the facility, which reportedly uses compacted garbage as filling material, has worsened the mobility problem of trucks and heavy equipment.

“We need a landfill that is properly developed and accessible,” he stressed.

With this, Cabanlas proposed the establishment of two sanitary landfills, one for the city’s eastern part and another for the western part, saying the growing population of the city and geographical spread require decentralized waste management facilities.

“Cagayan de Oro is becoming a metro city. We need two landfills,” he concluded. (FDC/ SP)