Ombudsman orders 90 local officials to explain illegal dump sites

The Office of the Ombudsman has ordered more than 90 local government officials to explain and comment on the complaints filed against them over the violation of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 or Republic Act No. 9003, particularly the presence of illegal dump sites.

About 30 investigators from the team of the Environmental Ombudsman have been deployed to serve the orders on mayors, vice mayors, and Sanggunian Bayan members of Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Bataan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal, Albay, Quezon, Oriental Mindoro, Northern Samar, Leyte and Palawan.

It can be recalled that in February, the Ombudsman officially started its probe of around 600 local government officials throughout the country over illegal dump sites and other environmental violations.

READ: Ombudsman probes local gov’t execs over illegal dump sites

A total of 50 complaints were filed, covering local officials in 50 local government units across 13 administrative regions.

The complainants said mayors, vice mayors, and local legislative officials “conspired in committing the violations of RA 9003,” noting they had “the mandate to establish policies and … control over the funds of the city.”

The Ombudsman gave the officials a nonextendible period of 30 days to submit their explanation and Safe Closure and Rehabilitation Plan (SCRP), including the proposal to immediately close the open dump site.

The local officials were also ordered to detail the “specific tasks, activities and legislative action to be completed within six months of SCRP implementation.”

According to RA 9003, “no open dump sites shall be established and operated, nor any practice or disposal of solid waste by any person, including LGUs, which constitutes the use of open dumps for solid wastes, be allowed after the effectivity of this act, every LGU shall convert its open dumps to controlled dumps.” RC