Recently, contractor Mr. Yuan called Guangdong Radio and Television Station to complain about the local government withholding 1.34 million yuan in project payment. When the host phoned the relevant government office to mediate the issue, a government staff member told the operator, “Ignore it, hang up,” sparking outrage among netizens.
On June 6, Guangdong Radio and Television Station’s official account for “Guangdong Voice Hotline” released a program video showing a contractor surnamed Yuan complaining to the host about the overdue project payment from Longtou Town, Potou District, Zhanjiang City, Guangdong Province.
Mr. Yuan stated that he undertook the rainwater and sewage diversion project in Shandai Village, Longtou Town, starting construction on May 15, 2021, and completing it in December 2022.
In early 2023, after project acceptance and financial review, the total amount was about 2.04 million RMB. Part of the payment was made during the construction period, but the remaining balance of over 1.34 million yuan has not been paid to date.
Mr. Yuan helplessly expressed, “I’ve been chased to a dead end, and I haven’t dared to go home for the Chinese New Year for years.”
During the program, the host called the deputy mayor of Longtou Town in Potou District to coordinate the matter, to which he responded, “The acceptance has been completed, but the funds from above have not arrived yet, so we can’t make the payment.”
The host then dialed the office of the Potou District government. Upon answering the call, a female staff member said to the host, “Please hold on for a moment.”
Subsequently, the sound of her conversing with a male staff member was heard from the other end of the line, with her stating, “The radio station, I dare not respond to these questions.”
The male and female staff exchanged some words, and when the host inquired, “Is your director speaking? Let him come to the phone,” there were a few chuckles heard from the other end. The male staff member instructed the female colleague, “Ignore it, hang up,” leaving the host bewildered.
After the video footage went public, it triggered numerous mockeries from mainland Chinese netizens, such as, “‘Ignore it, hang up,’ such arrogance, more chilling than withholding project payment,” and “The person who said ‘Ignore it, hang up’ should be held accountable.” Some netizens mentioned, “Many government projects rely on superior allocations, exposing the underlying contradictions in grassroots financial management.”
Under public pressure, on June 7, the Potou District government office of Zhanjiang City released a situation report stating that they highly value the related incident, have deployed a disciplinary and supervisory team to investigate the matter and suspended the two employees involved for inspection.
In fact, similar incidents are not uncommon. Previously, in Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province, there was a case where the town government delayed 21.22 million yuan in project payment, leading to the contractor falling seriously ill and tragic outcomes for the family.