A Frenchman who got rid of his old furniture and other bulky items on the sidewalk had the unpleasant surprise of finding them at home after the town mayor threw them back out the window.
When, last weekend, Eddy Valadier, mayor of Saint-Gilles, in Gard, was alerted by municipal agents to bulky items stored haphazardly in the street, he immediately ordered them returned to the sender.
“Our city is not a trash can,” thundered Mayor Valadier, before explaining to the media 20 Minutes on Tuesday that “the waste deposited in public spaces was returned to the home of the accused who admitted the facts.”
The right-wing municipal councilor traveled with police officers to ensure that the offender received a hefty fine and his furniture returned to the residence through the window, according to the local media.
While the mayor’s gesture was welcomed by some, it sparked harsh comments on social media, where Internet users denounced such a communication exercise, not without pointing out the town hall’s failure in terms of garbage collection.
“There was a time when municipal services would come by on a set date to remove bulky items,” lamented one Internet user, while another blamed recycling centers for “limiting the number of massages.”
