Walk the streets of Cebu City and you will eventually come across them: people sleeping in public places.
We aren’t talking about those who have passed out drunk after a night of drinking. We’re talking about people who don’t have homes to go to and sleep right where they want to.
It’s not a pretty sight. Especially when people sleep near tourist attractions, busy streets, or even around Plaza Sugbu near Cebu City Hall.
But then again, law enforcement might be reluctant to call attention to their actions, because while Cebu City’s Anti-Mendicancy Ordinance of 1996 penalizes begging and giving alms, it doesn’t cover public sleeping.
Now the Cebu City Anti Mendicancy Office (CCAMO) has publicly appealed to Councilor Pastor Alcover Jr. to take the lead in crafting an ordinance that would prohibit sleeping in public places.
A city that has people sleeping just wherever they want to, including in public places or tourist attractions, will not project a good image to visitors as well as locals. Such scenes seem to suggest that the city government, as well as its own constituency, cannot care for or does not care about its own.
There’s also something unsettling about seeing people sleep in public.
Sleep, at least the deep sleep you engage in to fully reinvigorate yourself for the next day --as opposed to just napping, dozing off, or catching a few winks-- is also one of the most personal things you can do. You’re not supposed to do it in public, let alone with people being able to see you.
But this isn’t just about what people who see people sleeping on the streets feel; this is also about public safety.
Those who sleep outside are exposed to hazards bad weather, traffic, and even criminal elements.
So, yes, we should discourage people from sleeping in public places. We also realize that waking them up and telling them to go sleep somewhere else is a partial solution.
People who sleep on the streets are likely doing so because they have nowhere else to sleep. This loops back to the issue of homelessness in the city, another problem that needs addressing.