The warning was issued by the Municipal Town Clerk, who said some residents avoid paying licensed garbage collectors and instead wait for the last Saturday of the month, when the nationwide cleaning exercise is conducted, to dispose of their waste.
"Residents should not keep garbage for a whole month expecting it to be collected free of charge during the National Cleaning Day. They should continue paying the usual collection fees to licensed service providers so that waste is removed regularly," the Town Clerk said.
He noted that prolonged storage of garbage creates unhealthy conditions and warned that residents who deliberately allow waste to accumulate could face action under existing waste management laws.
The Town Clerk was responding to complaints from residents who said garbage collected during the recent National Cleaning Day had not been removed promptly by the municipality.
He, however, assured the public that the municipality had already coordinated with its waste collection service providers and that the exercise to remove the accumulated waste was underway.
"We have already coordinated with our service providers, and the process of collecting the garbage gathered during the National Cleaning Day has started. Residents should remain calm as the exercise continues," he said.
The Town Clerk also warned residents against burning garbage, describing the practice as illegal and harmful to both public health and the environment.
"Anyone found burning garbage will be arrested and prosecuted in accordance with the law," he warned.
Municipal authorities urged residents to embrace proper waste management practices by ensuring regular garbage collection instead of relying solely on the monthly clean-up exercise, saying maintaining a clean and healthy municipality requires collective responsibility.