NAKAMAMATAY! WEH…

                            

A huge “No Pedestrian Crossing” sign underneath a footbridge at the corner of Roxas Boulevard and Airport Road in Pasay City warns “Nakamamatay” or that jaywalking there could kill you. A stone’s throw away at the center island fronting the Baclaran Church, a similar sign was more emphatic in warning “May Namatay na Dito!”  Translated from the vernacular, the Baclaran signage claims that a jaywalker had already been killed crossing the busy boulevard.

“Tumawid lang nagsimba nang may bulak sa ilong sa Redemptorist,” says an ambulant vendor with a sheepish grin. But someone is clearly unconvinced as he or she has spray-painted on the signage the word “Weh,” which is the in-vogue equivalent of “ows” or “talaga lang” -- all roughly translating to “really” as a jaded or carefree expression of disbelief. That’s the Filipino sense of humor at work: Dark and morbid at times, and fatalistic too with the belief that God will always keep us from harm.

Well, there’s no “Weh-ing” this: A total of 5,800 Filipinos got run over on Metro Manila’s streets in 2012, according to the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA). Of that total, 60 pedestrians got killed in Quezon City, 21 died in Manila, 13 in Caloocan, 9 in Malabon, 8 in Makati, 6 apiece in Las Piñas, Valenzuela and Pasig, 5 in Muntinlupa, 4 in Taguig, 3 in Marikina, and 2 in Mandaluyong.

Curiously, while Pasay had the most number of pedestrian-related accidents in 2012 at 1,246, only 1 (that’s still one too many) died there. Guess where the lone fatality in Pasay bid this world adieu? Hmmmmm. In front of the Redemptorist Church? Weh? Hindi nga? Is there still an iota of doubt? 

Image by JhD/ConceptCentral