When the protagonists in the Antipolo road rage incident woke up that fateful day, they probably did not expect that their lives would forever be changed by the events of that day. For one person, it would be his last breakfast. For another, if things do not go his way in court, it would be his last morning as a free man. A few hours after they left their respective homes, their paths would cross in violence. A combination “kamote” bad driving and arrogance, utter disregard of traffic rules, lack of patience, and gun safety awareness resulted in tragedy. The toll is now one dead biker, two badly injured innocents and one incarcerated gun owner.
When the first video came out, there were many who immediately condemned the gun-wielding four-wheel vehicle owner. They were criticizing the gun owner for shooting the rider and inadvertently hitting onlookers including the said gun owner’s wife. As other videos and eyewitness accounts came out, there were more and more who blamed the now-deceased rider and his companions. Those who sided with the gun owner opined that he had no choice as he was being pummeled by more than one rider and that he was the one being attacked. Some just immediately blamed the rider’s attitude and alleged “kamote” actions.
The fact that a lot of people automatically think the deceased rider is the one at fault is a testament to the amount of hate Filipinos in general have for so-called “kamote” riders. Personally, I had my encounter with arrogant riders along that very highway where that incident occurred. In my case, it only amounted to curses and dents on my vehicle. I was able to get their plate numbers and reported them to the nearest law enforcement station where I still had friends. I was then able to file cases against them. I took delight in having them attend cases in Antipolo far from their homes. I am fortunate that my personality allows me to defer my anger and resort to other ways of punishing “kamotes”. Unfortunately, there are times when we cannot control our anger especially when these pugnacious and irritable scoundrels of the road are involved. That being said, reacting in anger never ends well.
The danger of road rage cases increases when one party has a gun. It is regrettable that the gun owner in this case forgot one of the cardinal rules of gun ownership. Be sure of your target and be aware of what is behind it. In this case, the gun owner’s loved one got hit because of indiscriminate and reckless firing.
Countries with the least amount of road rage incidents have some things in common. For one, they have good public transport systems. Another is strict law enforcement on the road. I have always espoused a more draconian and merciless enforcement of traffic rules. More people on the ground supported by cameras and AI can go a long way in deterring reckless driving which inevitably leads to road rage incidents.
Maybe better technology in the future can produce robot AI (artificial intelligence)-driven traffic cops that would punish even the slightest deviation of traffic rules without exception. Perhaps this can help minimize or prevent future road rage incidents.
