Phnom Penh municipal administration officials rubbish collection services in Phnom Penh will not operate normally during the Pchum Ben Festival from September 16-18. Hean Rangsey
Phnom Penh municipal administration officials have requested house owners, business owners and citizens in the capital to store their rubbish in their homes during the three-day Pchum Ben festival.
A Phnom Penh administration announcement released on Tuesday said some staff at Cintri (Cambodia) Ltd will go off on leave from September 16 to 18 to celebrate the holidays.
As a result, rubbish collection services in Phnom Penh will not operate normally during that period.
“Please do not take rubbish or solid waste to the public road during this holiday. The Phnom Penh administration hopes that all business owners and citizens will take part to maintain good environmental hygiene in the capital,” it said.
But residents of Krang Thnong and Kouk Khleang communes in the capital’s Sen Sok District said Cintri’s rubbish collection has always been unsatisfactory, even when there isn’t a holiday.
Svay Nareth, a resident of the Borey Piphup Thmey gated community near Krang Thnong commune hall said rubbish is only collected three to four times per month from his home, which causes a bad odour and affects the health and environment of his community.
“It does not matter if it is a holiday or not, rubbish collection in my area seems very slow. Perishable rubbish that has been kept for many days causes a stench and affects health and the environment, even though we store it properly,” he said.
He said a programme should be created to increase rubbish collection, and that he would like to see two to three more pickups a month.
Khieu Vuthy, a Cintri staff member in charge of rubbish collection told The Post on Wednesday that the slow pace of rubbish collection is due to citizens’ inability to store it properly.
Vuthy said citizens must abide by the company’s rules and prepare their rubbish properly on pickup days, or else it will not be picked up.
“We acknowledge that some citizens have a good understanding of packaging rubbish and they take part in separating waste properly according to our programme, but some citizens still do not do it properly.
“Some people throw rubbish on public streets and private spaces. These are factors that contribute to the slow pace of rubbish collection,” he said.
Vuthy called on all related people, especially house and business owners, to take part in cleaning and packaging rubbish and solid wastes tidily and abide by the company’s guidelines.
