As of this writing, 40 passengers of the ill-fated M/V St. Thomas Aquinas, one of 2Go’s three passenger boats servicing the Mindanao-Visayas-Manila route, have been confirmed dead while nearly 200 others are still missing, following a shocking collision of 2Go’s vessel with a heavy-duty cargo ship owned by the infamous Sulpicio shipping company. On June 21, 2008, nearly a thousand passengers perished off the seawaters of Sibuyan Island in Romblon province after the Sulpicio-owned M/V Princess of the Stars sank as it ventured into the eye of the storm (Typhoon Frank).

On December 20, 1987, M/V Doña Paz, again Sulpicio-owned, was figured in what was to be called as the “world’s worst peacetime sea tragedy.” More than 4,300 Filipino passengers died when Doña Paz collided with MT Vector, a tanker that carried 8,800 barrels of gasoline. Hundreds of other lives were lost due to two other boat accidents: MV Doña Marilyn in 1988 and MV Princess of the Orient on September 18, 1998 – all owned by Sulpicio Lines, which has since changed its name into Philippine Span Asia Carrier Corporation. Last Friday’s sinking of M/V St. Thomas Aquinas is not yet confirmed as Sulpicio’s fault, but investigation is underway. It would be unfair to condemn Sulpicio until there is an official report from maritime authorities.

What is clear, however, is that one of the captains of the two vessels must have been sleeping or playing forbidden games when the boats collided. How can we explain that in a vast, vast sea – in a kingdom by the sea – two giant boats are competing for an inch of travel space in an enormous sea? Perhaps it is forgivable if we learn that a boat sinks after it is being battered by a ferocious typhoon in the middle of a monstrous sea. But collision near the port of Cebu City in an open, wide sea? It is outrageous, if not preposterous. Regardless of public shock and disgust, the damage has been done - the tragedy has claimed innocent lives all because our maritime authorities, including some shipping companies, have not learned the lessons of the past – and until they admit their mistakes in the past and learn from them, history is bound to repeat itself – and when history repeats itself, it is unthinkably tragic.

Frankly, government has been lenient in dealing with the past errors of shipping companies in the country, assuming that every sea tragedy should the last of its kind. But the government has been proven wrong in numerous times: every sea mishap such as last Friday’s is a reflection of our loose implementation of maritime laws and shallow enforcement of safety rules and regulations. Who are going to suffer as a result of government’s babysitting of shipping companies which have made them spoiled brat in the halls of maritime bureaucracy? The poor people. Ordinary Filipino travelers, sojourners. Those who still find air travel costly (when in fact it is not). Who are going to suffer as a result of the apathy of shipping companies to comply with safety rules and regulations? Our poor neighbors and friends who have to salvage their last centavo so they could buy a boat ticket to reach home. Until we embrace the lessons of history, all tragedies are bound to be repeated. Over and over again.