EDITORIAL - Not everyone can afford to lose

As per a report in Brigada News, a truck driver in Toledo City, Cebu, was arrested after the money he remitted to his employer was ?40,000 short.

Police investigation revealed that the truck driver, a resident of Barangay Guadalupe, Carcar City, had been entrusted to remit ?149,623 paid for delivered construction supplies to the company where he worked.

However, the total amount remitted to the company was ?40,000 short. He later admitted that he had spent the missing money gambling on online games. His honesty can be admired, but his lack of restraint cannot. The company had him arrested for qualified theft.

While this scenario didn’t end in tragedy, unlike the one last May where a school teacher in Isabela hanged himself over ?200,000 in online gambling debts, this still doesn’t have a happy ending. The driver faces qualified theft, a serious criminal offense under Philippine law which may lead to jail time. It’s also not likely he kept his job.

Even if he does manage to avoid charges, jail time, and keep his job, it’s not likely he will be entrusted with such important tasks ever again.

He lost so much just giving in to a moment of weakness.

This story isn’t original anymore. There have been many tales of people who lost their freedom, their job, or even their lives because they didn’t know when to stop gambling.

So why aren’t people who shouldn’t gamble stopping?

Is it because it’s all too easy to access such gaming apps? Is it because there aren’t enough warnings that gambling can easily become an addiction? Is it because some people just don’t know when to stop? Is it because all of those reasons mentioned above?

Like we have said countless times before, what people do for their amusement and pastime is their own business, including online gambling. But while everyone can afford to win at gambling, not everyone can afford to lose.

And for those who keep losing, the thought of keeping on gambling to recoup a loss is always an option, albeit not a cheap one.