• THERESA MAE DULMAN
The Bacolod City Legal Office (CLO) is currently investigating two separate incidents involving the illegal dumping of garbage by closed vans along the Circumferential Road in Barangay Bata, Bacolod City.
CLO spokesperson Atty. Vanessa Encabo said that the reported incidents took place on January 8 and January 26.
She said that witnesses were able to take photographs of the vehicles, including their plate numbers, while the illegal acts were being committed.
Encabo said the city is now coordinating with the Land Transportation Office, who already identified the owners of the vehicles.
The CLO is also working with the Permits and Licensing Office to determine if the parties involved operate businesses within the city.
If the owners of the identified closed vans are found to have registered businesses in the city, the city government may issue a show cause order against them.
Encabo noted that the action is a direct violation of City Ordinance No. 596, series of 2012, which prohibits the indiscriminate throwing and dumping of garbage.
The perpetrators may also face charges for violating Republic Act 9003, also known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act.*
