EDITORIAL — Pretty? Yes. Durable? Hmmm…

Just how durable are some of the lampposts installed in public places?

We have to ask this question after video circulated of a student in Mandaue City horsing around a decorative lamppost near the clock tower of the Mandaue City Heritage Plaza.

He grabbed it as if to swing around it, only to have it break like something brittle under his touch and crash into the street. It was good he wasn’t hurt.

Now Mayor Jovito “Jonkie” Ouano wants all decorative lampposts in the area checked.

“Basi’g ang materials used ana, kung substandard ba ni ang mga materials nga gipanggamit, I hope not. Ipaayo nalang g’yud na siya. Ipa-inspect nalang sad to ang ubang lamp post naa didto. Akoang nakita gikuptan sa bata unya natumba. May nalang gani walay naigo nga laing bata kay daghan man to sila nga estudyante niagi,” Ouano said.

Of course, we don’t blame the student for acting like the kid he was. In fact, we can even thank him for inadvertently showing us some kind of structural weakness the lamppost had.

What happened could have been worse. The student could have gone down with the lamppost and hurt himself in the street, or the lamppost could have gone down on top of him and hurt him, or the lamppost could have hit a vehicle. We are thankful none of the above happened in this case.

Someone try and see if those other similar decorative lampposts in the plaza fall down easily. We are kidding, of course. Tempting as it is to try we would rather not cause any further damage or put people at risk.

But yes, those other decorative lampposts in the area should be checked.

This shouldn’t be taken lightly; while a lamppost isn’t meant for rough handling like playground equipment, it should still be expected to be durable considering it is expected not just to provide light but also to be able to withstand wear and tear and exposure to all kinds of weather.

Or were these just meant to look pretty and not really stand up to the weight of a child swinging around it?