Commentary: Chope if you must, but why risk valuable items just to save a seat?

SINGAPORE: Have you ever used your mobile phone or wallet to reserve or “chope” a seat or table at a busy food court?
What about your credit card or identity card? Or perhaps a laptop – or even your entire handbag or backpack? A shopping bag or two, filled with new purchases?
To “chope” or reserve a space in public is a longstanding element of Singapore culture. (We’re not alone in this – the likes of Japan and Korea see this widely practised as well.) 
However, conversations on this subject can often get heated, with naysayers calling it selfish and inconsiderate. But whether you’re for or against it, we need to talk about how choping has gone too far. 
I can’t begin to count the number of times I’ve visited al fresco eateries to see pets tied to the table leg or harnessed to the chair while their owner is off ordering avocado toast and a double-shot low-fat organic oat milk latte with hazelnut syrup and pumpkin spice.
Some dogs wait calmly, but many poor mutts strain at their collars, staring fixedly in the direction their owner last disappeared to, emitting pitiful whines or even fearful barks and ignoring anyone else’s attempts to soothe them.
On rarer occasions, I’ve even witnessed toddlers, kids, and even babies in prams – real, live, tiny breathing and kicking human beings – being used to chope seats. 
Babies in prams are usually laid-back and oblivious, and many “choping” kids are fortunate enough to be hypnotised by the tablets or mobile phones left behind by their parents and caretakers to keep them entertained.
But I’ve also noticed petrified-looking ones scanning the food court/hawker centre anxiously for their parent(s), while wailing plaintively to themselves “where is mummy/daddy”, tears brimming in their eyes. 
You may be wondering: “What’s the big deal? Singapore is the safest country in the world, right?”. After all, we have CCTVs everywhere – more than 90,000 in public spaces such as parks, roads and public spaces. By 2030, that number will double to 180,000.
But as an old Singapore Police Force ad tagline goes, “low crime doesn’t mean no crime”. 
So if you happen to return to your chope-d seat with a food-laden tray, only to find your IC, mobile phone, laptop, iPad, security pass, house keys, Chanel handbag (I really have witnessed that with my own eyes), fruits of your most recent shopping spree, pedigree Labradoodle puppy, or offspring missing, it either means you’ve either been terribly unlucky, or extremely stupid.
Even if there are CCTVs everywhere, what use would they be against a crook wearing a mask, cap or sunglasses – or better still, all of the above?
And why risk the ruin of your day – or even your life – just for the sake of a moment’s convenience?
Think about it: If anything important was swiped, you’d first experience that unpleasant panicky, fluttery, dry-mouthed “the world has collapsed on my head, my heart has exploded from my chest, and my stomach has plummeted into my toes” feeling. You’d lose your appetite immediately for the food you’ve just bought, hunger giving way to anxiety or despair.
You’d have to head to a police station to file a police report, which could take hours. 
You’d have to call or text your office or home to say you’re going to be late coming back because stuff has gone missing.
Oh wait. You can’t call or text anyone if it’s your mobile phone that’s gone missing. 
Maybe you could just head back to the office and email your boss. 
But if your workplace lanyard was the choping collateral that had gotten swiped, you wouldn’t be able to get back in. What if someone then used it to gain access to your office for underhanded purposes, and office security checked the door access system and realised the culprit had gotten in using your stolen pass? 
What if it was your laptop that had gone missing? Client details, your latest project, or other highly sensitive information in it can be hacked, sold and used against you and your organisation.
You would also have to fork out good money to replace your IC, iPhone 16 Pro Max or laptop. Phone still on contract? You’d have to continue paying for that while taking on a new contract.
You’d have to contact banks, telcos, credit card companies and so on to report whatever losses, and you might be at risk of identity theft.
After buying replacement devices, setting them up would take up considerable time and effort. Haven’t had time recently to back up all your documents and photos? Too bad.
Then there’s also the lengthy business of filing insurance claims … which usually involves filling in countless forms and answering the same questions over and over again.
Let’s not even think about how you’d feel if your dog broke free from its leash to go look for you because the barista was taking too long. 
Or if your kid develops separation anxiety and abandonment issues, or gets approached by a shady stranger while you were using them as a sub for a packet of tissue paper – yes, it’s highly unlikely such incidences would actually ever come to pass, but then again, unlikely things do happen every day.
Bad luck is one thing, but taking unnecessary risks is entirely another.
So hey Singapore, chope if you must – but let’s just stick to good old-fashioned low-value, easily replaceable inanimate objects like tissue paper packets, umbrellas, books, and water bottles, okay? 
Tracy Lee is a freelance lifestyle writer based in Singapore.