Social Listening Captures the Wave of Citizen Criticism on Social Media

NoLimit Indonesia – Waste management in South Tangerang City (Tangsel) has again sparked public anxiety. From the end of December 2025 to the beginning of January 2026, piles of rubbish were seen in various public spaces, from under the Ciputat flyover to the sidewalks in the Serpong area. This condition gave rise to complaints from residents and developed into a widespread discussion on social media.

This phenomenon not only occurs in the field, but is also reflected in digital conversations. Monitoring results media monitoring shows a spike in news and public discussion regarding the South Tangerang waste issue during that period.

Crisis at Cipeucang TPA, Real Impact in Public Spaces

Quoting the news Detik newsSouth Tangerang City Government through Environmental Service (DLH) set status waste emergency response for 14 days, starting from 23 December 2025 to 5 January 2026. This policy was taken after a number of points in the city were filled with mountains of rubbish which caused a strong smell and disrupted residents’ activities.

This crisis was triggered by temporary closures Cipeucang Final Disposal Site (TPA). which is currently undergoing construction arrangements to prevent landslides and improve long-term safety. As a result, the waste transportation process is disrupted and accumulation is inevitable.

Residents and motorists reported unpleasant odors and traffic jams due to rubbish spilling onto the road. In fact, strategic areas such as around the South Tangerang DPRD office and the Serpong Community Health Center were also affected, indicating the widespread scale of the problem.

Waste Generation Data: Increasingly Heavy Infrastructure Burden

Based on official documents from the South Tangerang City Government, daily waste generation in South Tangerang reaches approx 1,022.65 tonsor equivalent 373,267.45 tons per year. That much 77.41 percent comes from household waste, with a predominance of food waste (leftovers).

In recent years, processing capacity has decreased due to the Cipeucang landfill which has exceeded its capacity. This imbalance between waste volume and processing capacity makes the system very vulnerable. When one element is disrupted, the impact is immediately felt in public spaces.

Institutions and Policies: Looking for Long-Term Solutions

In response to these conditions, Mayor of South Tangerang Benyamin Davnie expressed the regional government’s commitment to strengthening cross-regional collaboration. One of the steps being encouraged is the expansion of TPS3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) and strengthening waste banks at the sub-district level, in order to reduce waste generation from the source.

Apart from that, the South Tangerang City Government is also exploring regional cooperation with the City and Regency of Bogor to develop Waste to Electrical Energy (PSEL) Management facilities at the Cipeucang TPA. The project is designed similarly to technology waste into energy which has been implemented in a number of large cities in Indonesia.

Residents’ Complaints: Smell, Discomfort, and Disappointment

On the ground, residents feel the direct impact of this waste crisis. Media monitoring shows mountains of rubbish along Jalan Ir H Juanda (Ciputat) to the Serpong area, with a strong smell that disrupts daily activities.

“The smell of the rubbish is so uncomfortable, it makes it difficult to sleep at night,” said a trader around the Ciputat flyover. Other residents consider this condition to reflect the decline in the quality of the environment where they live.

Complaints were also widely voiced on social media. Residents highlighted the lack of temporary disposal sites (TPS) in residential areas, and assessed that the government’s steps were still emergency, and had not yet touched on systemic long-term solutions.

Social Media Sentiment: The Dominance of Public Criticism

Results conversational data analysis And social listening shows that public sentiment towards the South Tangerang waste issue is dominated by neutral to negative tones.

• Negative Talk: There were 1,800 negative conversations. This shows that the waste issue in South Tangerang tends to trigger complaints or bad sentiments in society rather than appreciation.
• Neutral sentiment appears in the form of sharing information on waste accumulation locations and emergency status updates.
• Positive Talk: Only a small portion of the 186 conversations (around 1.2%) were positive in tone.

This digital conversation shows based on data collected from the social listening platform IndSight that the South Tangerang waste issue has developed into an issue of reputation and public trust in city governance.

Analysis: Systemic Problems of Urban Cities

A number of observers assess that South Tangerang’s waste crisis reflects the challenges of modern urban cities. The problem does not only lie in the limitations of the landfill or transport fleet, but also in people’s consumption patterns and the readiness of the waste management system as a whole.

Without behavior change, data utilization, and evidence-based planning, similar problems have the potential to continue to recur.

The waste crisis in South Tangerang at the end of 2025 is a serious warning for metropolitan buffer cities.

Long-term solutions require a combination of strategies, ranging from strengthening infrastructure, utilizing technology, cross-regional collaboration, to increasing public awareness.

In this context, utilization media monitoring and social listening data becoming increasingly important. Through Unlimited DashboardGovernment agencies, business actors and stakeholders can monitor public conversations in real-time, understand public sentiment, and formulate data-based policies that are more precise and responsive.