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By Libya Herald staff.
Benghazi, 1 April 2015:
Security, electricity and rubbish collection services have been the focus of Benghazi’s Crisis Committee this . . .[restrict]week as they attempt to improve conditions for the city’s residents.
On Security, Crisis Committee Chairman Zakaria Bitamer met with head of detection at the city’s Security Directorate, Idriss Saaiti, to plan ahead. The directorate, Saaiti noted, had not received any funding from the government. Nonetheless, its personnel had continued to work to make the city safe. He pledged that long after the Libyan National Army had completed its job in defeating militants in Benghazi, his security personnel would continue to work to root out remaining “sleeping cells” of terrorists.
According to the media spokesperson for the Crisis Committee, Hani Belras Ali, electricity services have also continued without funding from the government. Again, staff have continued working despite not being paid. Nevertheless, the city’s electricity problems had greatly improved recently, the spokesperson said, and the electric company was working at full capacity.
In the case of rubbish collections and street cleaning which were hit by yet another strike over unpaid wages last month, the head of the cleansing organisation, Fathi al-Obeidi, said that a considerable about of rubbish that had been piled up in the streets had now been removed. His department were still waiting for money from the government – a demand that, according to Ali, Zakaria reiterated when he submitted a budget request to the Prime Minister late last month.
The Beida-based Ministry of Local Government promised to provide LD 9 million for backpay for Benghazi’s garbage cleaners but it has not arrived so far. [/restrict]
