EDITORIAL — The consequences of theft

An accident involving a motorcycle has claimed another life. But what happened in Pandacan, Manila, last April 19, could have been preventable.

According to news reports, a delivery rider riding his motorcycle along Beata Bridge in Pandacan died after he suddenly lost control of his motorcycle, launched off the bridge, and landed in the yard of a brewery under the bridge.

The sad thing was that the accident didn’t have to end up tragic. Investigation revealed that from where he fell off the bridge, there were railings missing. Railings that had been sawed off and stolen by thieves. Barangay officials say that these railings could have prevented the delivery rider and his motorcycle from launching off the bridge and into the brewery.

This death was a consequence of theft.

The even sadder thing is that such thefts of what can be considered public or government property are common, even here in Cebu. Remember those yellow barriers that Cebu City traffic enforcers used to put up in certain areas to mark no embarking/disembarking zones? Some individuals decided to take many of them apart slowly, one bar after another.

Eventually, many of these barriers were rendered so ineffective they had to be taken down because they no longer served their purpose.

Sure, a barrier here, a length of copper wire there, a nut or bolt here or there, people may not notice the little things missing. But when these little thefts add up, they can render public infrastructure ineffective or, worse, even turn them into hazards.

It’s only a form of justice if thieves invite misfortune upon themselves when committing these crimes, like when they electrocute themselves stealing wires which turn out to be attached to main power lines. There have been several incidents of this recently.

But when their greed results in the injury or death of others, then that’s something entirely different.

Needless to say we need to safeguard public property from those who may end up endangering others for their own personal gain.