A group of over ten Vietnamese members from an environmental protection community gathered to clean up the venue of Hung Kings Temple in Ho Chi Minh City on the death anniversary of the nation’s founding fathers, though their plan drew some unsupportive opinions from the public. 

As many people visited Hung Kings Temple in Thu Duc City under Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday to commemorate Hung Kings’ death anniversary, which takes place each year on the tenth day of the third lunar month, waste from their activities was thrown here and there at the venue.

In this context, about ten volunteers from Green Trips Vietnam, a community for environmental protection enthusiasts, took action.

They were divided into two teams to pick up garbage at the temple from 7:00 am to 12:00 pm and from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm on Wednesday.

They even asked for trash that was still in users’ hands and kindly responded with a smile when someone gave them the garbage.

The group also classified the collected waste into three types -- organic waste, inorganic waste, and recyclable waste.

A number of participants in Wednesday’ anniversary, however, considered the volunteers’ good deeds as gimmicks to attract public attention.

“Some people said that we were just seeking attention and it was impossible for us to pick up trash at all other places,” said Bui Minh Thong, a junior at Cao Thang Technical College, who had participated in a number of Green Trips Vietnam’s activities before.

“It hurts to hear those words, but we think it may be better if everybody is doing what is labeled 'seeking attention' like us."

Some people were so inconsiderate and careless that they made the volunteers’ clothes dirty while putting trash into their waste collection bags.

“There’re so many kinds of people, not all are the same,” said Tuyet Nhi, a freshman at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Sciences and Humanities, who just partook in Green Trips Vietnam’s waste collection event for the first time, adding that some people randomly joined the group on Wednesday.

In addition to the waste collection, Green Trips Vietnam also hosted a talk show on environment topics and presented some gifts to the cleaning workers at Hung Kings Temple.

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