AROUND 50 garbage collectors have not been paid for almost three months, according to a radio report.
Iligan City Administrator Dr. Darwin Manubag said he needs to verify if the collectors have official deployment orders before they can be paid.
The situation has drawn criticism from residents, who pointed out the irony of the city recently receiving the Seal of Good Financial Housekeeping award from the Department of Interior and Local Government for Northern Mindanao.
According to a radio caller, some of the collectors told officials they were willing to work without deployment orders, hoping to receive them later.
Other residents criticized the arrangement, saying the decision to hire is a government prerogative and not something to be requested by job seekers.
The city reportedly does not have a budget for the collectors’ wages. The issue was not included in the supplemental budget, and the local government is now in a difficult situation.
