EDITORIAL — Homelessness still an issue

As per a report in this newspaper, police are investigating the death of a 71-year-old street dweller who was found on a sidewalk in Barangay Pari-an, Cebu City, last Wednesday morning, July 8.

The Pari-an Police Station said that around 6:50 A.M. they were alerted to a report of a stench coming from a man lying on the sidewalk. The man was later found to be already dead.

Patrolman Ronel Alqueza said an autopsy has been requested to determine the exact cause of the man’s death, although there appeared to be no signs of suspicious wounds or injuries on him.

They also said he was seen still alive shortly after midnight the previous day.

It’s sad that some people have to die this way. The least he could have had was some dignity; ideally he should have died in bed surrounded by his loved ones.

However, that is the reality in any major metropolis or highly-urbanized city around the world; there will always be people who have no home, people who live in the streets, and people who do not have anyone to take care of them while they are still alive or even after they are dead.

Yes, homelessness is still an issue. Even in the so-called Queen City of the South.

Of course, the Cebu City Government has not been remiss in attending to the needs of those who don’t have anywhere else to live. To their credit, there are now programs designed to keep people or even entire families off the streets. However, not only is the city’s budget limited, some street dwellers don’t find these programs and interventions to their liking.

But this does not mean the city should stop taking care of those in the streets.

How a city treats its homeless is a good reflection of the character of its people.

They deserve attention. More often than not, those who are in the streets, those who have to live in sidewalks are there not of their own choice. Fortune doesn’t always smile upon all of us.