EDITORIAL — Let these be warnings

It has happened yet again.

According to a news report in The FREEMAN’s sister publication BANAT News, a 15-year-old was rescued after he allegedly jumped off the Marcelo Fernan Bridge last Sunday night. It took rescuers several hours to find him floating off Barangay Cansaga in Consolacion town.

He was rushed to the Mandaue City Hospital where he is now being treated.

His father said he couldn’t believe his son jumped off the bridge.

It has barely been two weeks since someone jumped off the same bridge. Past midnight last February 25, a 19-year-old student was seen walking to the bridge. She went missing shortly thereafter although her bag, ID, and mobile phone, were recovered at the bridge.

Her dead body was found two days later in Shell Island in Cebu City.

We hate to assume the worst, but we must not discount the possibility that it was suicide in the case of the 19-year-old and a possible suicide attempt in the case of the 15-year-old, both in just a short span of time.

These should be cause for concern, not for the fact that the bridge is becoming a magnet for those who want to end their lives, but that those who sought to end their lives were of relatively young age.

We would expect someone who wants to commit suicide as facing a huge and insurmountable burden whether this is economic, health-related, or something else entirely. Normally these problems are faced by adults who are now saddled with multiple responsibilities or those who have committed acts they already regret, and not those who haven’t even left their teen years yet.

Are there now issues and problems pressing the younger generation to such despair the only way out they see is in killing themselves? Well, yes. We are aware that many so-called modern maladies like social media, peer pressure, and life in an urban setting are creating levels of stress not present in previous generations.

Of course, there can be other factors as well.

These two incidents should serve as warnings to parents, teachers, and other guardians to be always in the business of what their children are going through. It may save lives.