She was alone and helpless.

(Baonghean) - Today, the woman selling drinks reverted to her true self: eccentric, sharp-tongued, and unusually sensitive. She loudly declared, "That high-ranking official spoke very well and was very right, but after listening, I felt pain and sadness for the plight of ordinary people. It just goes to show how apt and insightful our ancestors were when they called us 'commoners' or 'lowly citizens'."

"Thảo" means grass, and the fate of grass symbolizes weakness, a lowly, powerless, and vulnerable position, easily abandoned, despised, and trampled upon. That was her reaction when she heard people discussing a leader in a major city in the South admitting, "Only those who are alone and have no connections would go to the citizen reception office to file a complaint."

That sad reality, almost everyone has known for a long time. They knew but didn't speak up, so when someone finally did, especially someone in a position of authority, it still deeply saddened many, from ordinary citizens to public servants. Almost without exception, whenever someone faces injustice, they never immediately think of going to the "courts" to appeal. Instead, they search through distant relatives and neighbors to see if there's anyone, even just a casual acquaintance, working within the "public administration system" to ask for help. Of course, no one asks for help without a reason. Only when they've reached a dead end, meaning they can't find anyone else to ask, do they then file a complaint at the public service centers of various agencies, departments, and organizations.

They submit their applications with apprehension, lacking confidence that their cases will be thoroughly and promptly considered by divine providence. They think this way because of precedents: countless applications, stacks of them, bags of them, and even kilograms of them sent everywhere, yet never heard from, except for a reply acknowledging receipt of their application and forwarding it to... requesting resolution. The resolution process can drag on for one or two years, sometimes even decades, without any progress. Even when receiving applications, those in charge often receive them indifferently, sometimes even irritably, as if they are complicit in something that shouldn't be done. "Misfortune leads to litigation," only those who have suffered injustice and injustice and had to file lawsuits truly understand the suffering and humiliation of being alone and powerless.

The more I talk about it, the sadder I feel. But I must speak out so that those in positions of responsibility understand, empathize, and pay more attention to resolving the petitions, complaints, denunciations, and appeals for justice from the people. Especially those who are vulnerable and disadvantaged, because they are genuine ordinary citizens, the majority of society. And remember, they are always the main force in any revolution.

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