A kindly act for minors

I’d like to praise my dear friend, Inquirer columnist Ceres Doyo, for the blow-by-blow  report about Oliver Ang who put up a fight with Cesar Rivera and Teddy Bernardo when asked to hand them his money. A grim situation that caused Oliver’s death and brought the two culprits to jail. (Inquirer, 3/15/12)

I admired the way Doyo tracked down the mothers of Teddy and Cesar in a filthy, congested and overpopulated slum area. Entering the San Roque premises was a challenge, as it was with the mothers who wouldn’t talk.

Only a courageous, devil-may-care attitude, which Doyo has plenty of, can such a situation be overcome.

But there’s one important kindly act that Doyo may do, perhaps. She said she surely wants to meet Teddy and Cesar, that Teddy being a minor could be out by this time, after rehab. Trying to find “how they are, where they  are…” is a  job, an undertaking worth Doyo’s while.

I hope Doyo sees herself doing this task. I am a believer of those who, after serving their sentence, were set free and found lessons from their prison cell exposure. Have they kept hope, managed to struggle to be better men?

—HONORATA VICENCIO, honoravicencio@yahoo.com