The Sanitation Services of the Freetown City Council (FCC) has reportedly collapsed following the non-payment of outstanding fuel invoices and wages for sanitation workers.

According to report, fuel suppliers suspended deliveries to the FCC’s sanitation fleet after arrears were not settled. At the same time, sweepers and other sanitation staff remain unpaid. The two failures have brought waste collection vehicles to a standstill and halted routine street sweeping operations across the city.

The report indicated that the disruption is most severe along major roads and in densely populated neighbourhoods where daily cleaning is necessary to prevent litter accumulation and blocked drainage channels. With vehicles grounded and sweepers off duty due to unpaid wages, scheduled waste collection and street sweeping rounds have been cancelled or significantly reduced.

It is further acknowledged that overflowing bins and uncollected refuse are now accumulating at collection points and along road verges. Residents and commuters have reported increased litter, foul odours and blocked drains in several parts of the capital. The Council notes that the decline in cleanliness became visible within days of the service stoppage and is already affecting the city’s appearance and livability.

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Sources attribute the crisis to the withholding of essential administrative resources by the Chief Administrator, which they say has prevented the timely payment of fuel suppliers and sanitation workers. This has effectively obstructed the Mayor’s ability to deliver basic services and weakened the Council’s operational capacity.

The administrative impasse has also raised concerns within the Council about internal controls, budgetary oversight and the mechanisms available to resolve disputes over resource allocation without disrupting essential public services.

Report also stateD that restoring operations requires the urgent authorization of payments for outstanding fuel invoices and the settlement of unpaid wages for sanitation staff, adding that fuel deliveries must resume and sweepers must be paid in order for daily waste collection and street cleaning to restart immediately.

The source further recognizes the need to establish clear and transparent procedures to prevent similar interruptions in the future. These, officials say, should include contingency funding arrangements for essential services and a dispute resolution mechanism that would prevent core public functions from being paralysed.

It was warned that the current situation goes beyond an internal administrative dispute and could develop into a public health emergency if not addressed quickly, stressing that restoring sanitation services remains an immediate priority to safeguard public health, maintain civic order and reaffirm confidence in elected city leadership.