A young civil servant was sitting in her new office.
The administrator came to her and said:
“Will you please help sign this letter?”
She didn’t know why he used the word “help”. No one needs help when signing something. Besides, when you have to sign something, it’s usually for your own sake or interest.
“It’s the assignment letter for the trip to Medan,” he explained.
She’s heard about the official trip. But she knew she wasn’t assigned to go. Several people, whom she doesn’t know, will go.
“But I’m not assigned to go, right?”
He seemed hesitate to answer: …”Well…”
“I’m not going, right?”
“No, you’re not.”
She read the letter. It said that she’d be given money, about one and half times her monthly salary, to finance the trip.
“What about the money? I won’t get it, right?”
The administrator said, close to whisper, “The money will be given to the ones who’ll go.”
”Ah, I see.”
She signed it anyway.
One of her colleagues, a rookie like her, came. He was asked to do the same.
She couldn’t hide her cynical tone when telling him: “You only need to sign it. You don’t have to do or receive anything.”
The administrator finally felt he needed to justify.
“It was approved by the … (name of official position)”
She feels bad about him needing to explain that. She didn’t mean to blame him. He wasn’t the object of her cynicism. An approval by a high ranking official is a weak justification, though.
Her colleague, after reading the letter, signed it too.
Now she keeps asking why they signed it. They are newbies, hence their sort of idealism, and hate how things are run in the institution. Maybe they’re both just other pragmatists, after all. They just want to safe their asses.
it means that,the people were assigned to go, got money both of from their true assignment letter and from the "fiktif-fiktifan" assignment letter?
ReplyDeletehow about, if someday "she" will be assigned to go? will she also get the money from the other people were forced to sign the letter?
good question.
ReplyDeleteapparently there's update on the story. days after the signing, she met her boss, who planned the "assignment". the boss told her that's the way things are. most official trip budget can't afford the expenses. so the people who go will need more money. that's why, they should "help each other". so, from what the boss said (or justified), yes, she may get money from other people too when it comes to her assignment.
what an institution, huh?
Next post, plz :)
ReplyDelete