"Why Won't They Even Lend Me an Electric Drill?" A Complaining Citizen Turns the Community Service Center Upside Down

Complaint Posted on Chungnam Seosan City Hall Website
"Officials Neglecting Residents Must Be Disciplined"
After Incident Became Known, Many Criticize Saying "Go to Hardware Store"

A complaint about a 'power drill' has been raised on the Chungnam Seosan City Hall website, which previously sparked controversy when a post claimed that civil servants were rude for not offering watermelon they were eating to the complainant.

(This photo is not directly related to the article) [Photo source=Pixabay]

According to Seosan City on the 1st, on the 22nd of last month, a complainant who went to borrow a power drill from a township administrative welfare center posted a message on the city hall website’s free bulletin board.

The complainant wrote that they were treated like a ‘weirdo’ for not being able to borrow a drill at the community service center and said they planned to file complaints with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the Yongsan Presidential Office, and Chungnam Province.

The author, Mr. A, stated, "Due to the recent monsoon, the front door of my parents’ house was damaged. When I tried to repair it, I remembered borrowing a power drill from a community service center in Seoul before, so I visited a nearby administrative welfare center, explained my situation, and asked to borrow one. However, the civil servant said it was a personal tool and refused to lend it, recommending I use a nearby hardware store instead."

He continued, "When I insisted that I would leave my ID and return the drill, the staff glared at me for about 5 to 6 seconds as if I were a weirdo," adding, "I hope the unqualified civil servant who sent me away without even apologizing for not lending the drill and told me to go to a hardware store receives customer service training and is transferred to another department."

Mr. A said, "Who exactly are the township administrative centers for? Isn’t it the attitude of civil servants, who receive taxpayers’ money, to at least look after and help local residents so they don’t experience inconvenience?"

Two days after the post was made, on the 24th, the administrative welfare center posted an apology saying, "We ask for your understanding as we could not lend the equipment due to the lack of publicly available tools."

[Photo by Seosan City Hall website free board capture]

Since then, posts condemning the complainant have been continuously appearing on the bulletin board. Comments include, "These are personal tools, not government property. There is no reason to lend them," "Please purchase drills at hardware stores," "It’s hot weather; let’s support each other," and "What crime have Seosan civil servants committed?"

Meanwhile, earlier in late May, a citizen filed a complaint on the Seosan City Hall citizen participation board, claiming that township office civil servants ate watermelon without saying a word and did not offer any to them, which caused controversy.

At that time, the author expressed dissatisfaction in a post titled ‘I was treated like this in my hometown,’ saying, "I realized that I pay taxes for those kinds of people (civil servants). It was infuriating," and "Seeing our next generation who don’t even know what public service is made me feel truly disappointed."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.