EDITORIAL - Not worth the gasoline

Reportedly worried by the rising number of crimes committed by prisoners who have just been released, police in Cebu City have embarked on an idea: Ferry the freed prisoners to their homes in police buses and give them some counseling along the way.

There is no doubt that whoever cooked up this idea must have been motivated by the noblest of intentions. What makes the idea very difficult to be comfortable with is how the freed prisoners can be weaned away from a life of crime in this way.

For instance, how effective can any counseling be in the short time it takes for a bus to ferry a freed prisoner from the gates of prison to the door of his house. Why, the ride could be over before the freed prisoner can make the sign of the cross. It just isn't worth the gasoline.

If any counseling has to be done at all, it should be done while the prisoner is still in prison. Or if such counseling is being done and some follow-up is deemed necessary, then maybe it can be done at home in a series of sessions.

But then again, follow-up sessions need to be undertaken with the consent of the freed prisoner. Without a specific court order to that effect, and most probably with the help of the DSWD, or some other qualified agency, it is doubtful if the police can even do that at all.

Actually, a return to a life of crime by freed prisoners may have little or nothing to do with counseling or the lack of it. In all likelihood, it has more to do with opportunities to commit crime again presenting themselves, and knowing that getting caught is a matter of luck.

Without consistency and effectiveness in the enforcement of laws, getting caught becomes indeed a matter of luck. Indeed, it may not be too off the mark to suggest that for every criminal caught, one or two or even three can get away.

Given such odds, it will not come as a surprise if freed criminals opt to return to a life of crime on the notion that it was just tough luck to get caught the last time but that next time luck will be on the side of those who persist.

This is not meant to instill the wrong ideas among the criminally-bent, but rather to encourage law enforcers to just stick to the good old basics, which are enough in the first place, if only pursued in earnest and with diligence.