URBAN PLANNING, COMMUNAL HYGIENE AND CITIZENS AWARENESS
5.03.2013
Palilula Municipality, in the end of the last year, strengthened communal supervision in all Municipal settlements aiming at the improvement of life quality of its citizens. Acting on and after complaints and demands of the citizens from Crvena Zvezda settlement, night shifts of communal inspectors and associates were introduced. It has been established that in spite of many warnings and discussions of the president of Municipality with the residents of wild settlement made by Roma population, waste in the streets and pavements of `Dusana Popovica` boulevard with formation of wild landfill has not been ceased. On this occasion, president of Municipality Boban Dzunic and Bratislav Vuckovic, vice president with their associates and representatives of Medijana Public Enterprise visited Crvena Zvezda settlement.

`As it is known to everyone, Palilula Municipality in Nis has started with organized action of removing wild landfills, said Dzunic. One of our projects, that is being realized with the support of EU, has for its aim changing consciousness of our fellow citizens about environment protection. Many times we have had meetings with the residents of Crvena Zvezda. However after every meeting and cleaning, with the help of Medijana Public Enterprise, again waste was at the location and many citizens of this wild settlement throw waste out of waste containers. Citizens from neighborhood residential buildings sent petitions and asked for help from their Municipality and we came here to again do something for these people – emphasized Dzunic. This part of settlement is in the narrow city part, in immediate nearness of Cele Kula –Skull Tower monument and PMF – Faculty of natural sciences. With the City Act, in this zone, there is the highest restriction of keeping domestic animals. Our inspectors determined that the City Act is not obeyed at all and that in wild settlement ven horses are kept. All these destroy life surrounding. I am warning the citizens of this wild settlement that we will take the animals as soon as possible together with the inspection of the City special vet inspection. Therefore, we are will not any more warn anyone, we will start the very action-emphasized Dzunic.

Wild landfill captures even public traffic road in Dusana Popovica street and cadastre parcel 1661/1 KO Nis Cele Kula in the ownership of AD Construction material `Cele Kula` Nis that is not actually in the ownership of the State, nor they tried to adapt it to urban purpose from the General plan. Because of this inadequate plan and burning of the collected waste in helping objects of old brick factory frequently comes to fires. On this cadastre parcel there are two residential objects no 21 and 21a with many residential units of total surface of 800m2 that are in ownership of the City. In the recent period,

n the formal period, for the fact that construction inspection did not react, illegal further construction of these was made. No one of 32 people who got the decisions for the using residential until of approximate surface of 24M2 in the period from 1968 to 1996 by the Residential department of the City administration, does not live in this `address`. According to the evidence of the Centre for social work, Crvena Zvezda, no 21 and 21-a, 207 people were reported who addressed here for social help. Our communal inspectors have been many time during interventions verbally and physically attacked by the individuals from the settlement. According to the words of Palilula Municipal president long term resolution for the sanitation of this waste landfill is removal of wild settlement. Only 32 people lived there once who were registered. They do not live here anymore. According to our data in this wild settlement about 200 people live who are not registered in the Centre for social work. However, great number of people do not have registered residence and domicile. We asked from the Police administration in Nis to legitimate all the citizens in this part of the city and determine their basis of residence. Only who can bring the decision about the settlement is the unit of local self government, i.e. Mayor. If we had been the Municipality according to principle of local self government, emphasizes Dzunic, we would have solved this problem very fast.

This is one of the most unusual points when we are dealing with existence of wild landfills in the City says Bratislav Vuckovic, deputy director of `Medijana` Public Enterprise and vice president of Palilula Municipality. I have to be honest here to say that we in Medijana enterprise are loosing hope that this problem will be soon solved. Only in this year, probably for the twentieth time in row, we are cleaning this location which is totally out of work plan. Every week, on regular basis we are visiting this settlement and these containers are daily emptied. However, here is not in the matter only the absence of citizens consciousness and bad habits of individuals. I would not search for this matter the responsibility only in Roma population. Probably this waste landfill is by the road and is a true temptation to other citizens without any life environment awareness to put waste on this place. Only systematic solution is, as Municipal president just said, probably the removal of this whole settlement. This is not the matter to be discussed with us and bring the decisions – people from City communal sphere. We have a task-cleaning. For the citizens of Nis this sort of problems cost a lot. For example, today we cleaned three landfills in our city. One is in this wild settlement, second in Crvena Zvezda and above Triglavska street and third one in Pasi Poljana settlement. One round of garbage is about 3,500 dinars and today we will make like twenty rounds, said Vuckovic.

According to Boban Dzunic and Bratislav Vuckovic, obvious is the change of every individual basic task of all subjects. It does not cost a lot, but if we have to change our consciousness, then we have to change it with some penalties. Unfortunately, when we are dealing with violations that refer to communal and ecological problems still systematic solutions are far from us. Authorized organs, specially police and court, have to react according to notifications and citizens appeals and they have to be more strict in doing these things.

Palilula Municipality is one of five organizations of local self government of the City of Nis that very responsibly work on complete integration of social jeopardized people, specially Roma population in society. We are doing everything in the limits of our possibilities to cease with prejudices regarding employment, education, health protection and solving problems of residence in order to remove discrimination on any basis. However, certain matters of life quality of Roma population have to be solved systematically, specially residential conditions, self employments. Authorities of Palilula Municipality try with actions like ecologic campaign `Clean up` the world of Media ecologic new of Serbia EKOpolis and through the projects in cooperation with the City and donors to improve the quality of citizens life and provide additional resources for these purposes.