CALAMBA CITY, Laguna — Residents and motorists are urging immediate government action after a section of road between Barangay Barandal and Prinza Road leading to the lakeside bypass has reportedly remained wet 24 hours a day due to continuous drainage discharge, creating a hazardous stretch coated with thick moss.

According to complaints from riders and cyclists, the road never dries because water constantly flows from a nearby drainage outlet. Over time, algae and moss have formed across the downhill portion of the road, turning it into a slippery surface. Several accidents have already been reported, including one motorcycle that skidded and crashed into an electric post.

Concerned citizens say the issue has been repeatedly reported to local officials. However, residents claim the barangay office insists the area falls under a national road jurisdiction and is therefore the responsibility of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). The drainage itself was allegedly constructed within the boundary of Barangay Barandal, but the runoff accumulates at the boundary area near Barangay Prinza, leaving accountability unclear.

The situation has sparked frustration among daily commuters who pass through the route. What appears to be a simple infrastructure flaw has now become a safety hazard. In public governance, small oversights often create larger consequences — not through malice, but through gaps in responsibility.

This incident raises a broader concern: when infrastructure overlaps between local and national jurisdictions, urgent problems sometimes remain unresolved because agencies point to one another instead of acting together. Roads, after all, do not recognize administrative boundaries — but danger affects everyone equally.

If an accident is predictable and preventable, accountability becomes more than legal — it becomes moral. So the question remains: when a public hazard is already known, does responsibility depend on jurisdiction, or on who chooses to act first? (Larawan mula: Laguna Report News / Facebook)