ROME- Outraged citizens have protested to the mayor of the Eternal City after pigs were photographed grazing in piles of uncollected garbage in the humdrum Boccea district over Christmas.

 Residents sent photos of the unusual scene from the tranquil Via Domenico Montagnana to an online blog called “Roma fa Schifo” (Rome Sucks) to denounce the scandal. Trash collection crises have come to symbolise the failures of successive Italian governments notably when the Naples garbage collection system broke down for months causing traffic jams and violent public protests.

 “As in India, worse than in India,” the blogger captioned the article. “Close to Boccea a herd of pigs nuzzled in the garbage not collected for days.”

Rome’s new centre-left mayor Ignazio Marino responded by claiming that the AMA rubbish collection service had worked regularly over Christmas. “In those locations that have had special problems the AMA team will work to restore the situation to normal,” he added.

Opposition Forza Italia regional counsellor Adriano Palozzi called the pigs’ feast “third world slaughter” and urged the mayor to quit if he is unable to guarantee basic services a mere six months into his term of office.  

Estella Marino, city councillor for the Environment, acknowledged that the wandering pigs “can be dangerous for the safety and hygiene of residents.” Another municipal “team” of pig shepherds is working to determine who let the pigs wander freely and to round up the animals to take them to a safe location where they can be looked after,” she added.