Generous Idol Encounters Backlash Following Unexpected Fan Gift That Sparks Online Controversy
NCT‘s Jaemin is facing controversy after a White Day gift giveaway exploded into online drama.
The controversy began when Jaemin prepared 30 gift certificates for fans on White Day, March 14. He shared mobile certificates with messages like:
“Noona! Today is White Day, hehe. Right, right. I’m the one who should be giving this to you. It just took me a while to figure out my card situation.”
— Jaemin
However, things went sideways when at least nine certificates were claimed by one person, believed to be a non-fan. The certificates were cashed out at a Gumi Emart, sparking frustration and confusion among fans because the gifts were meant for many.
Fans quickly posted:
“NCTzens, no need to run to Emart before it opens today. Someone must have swiped all of them already. They all show up as cashed out at the Gumi location.”
— NCTzen
And:
“All of them show up as having a zero balance or as cashed out at Gumi Emart, LOL. Which one of you all decided to get rich off this?”
— NCTzen
An X (formerly Twitter) account linked to the person who cashed out all nine apologized, revealing an Emart employee who helped was fired after fan complaint calls:
“I shouldn’t have been so greedy when Jaemin gave these out as a generous gesture. I had no idea things would spiral out of control this big… The employee who helped me at the Gumi Emart has been fired because of your complaints. I’m really sorry. I should have done better, and I want to apologize to the employee. They didn’t do anything wrong. I’m so sorry.”
— The “Culprit” In Question
Once Jaemin learned about the issue, he gave out 10 more gift certificates for fans to make up for the problem:
“Oh… I had some more left to share.”
— Jaemin
But instead of calming fans, it added fuel to the fire. Some praised him for trying to fix the situation. Many criticized the original plan and said giving out more gifts only stirred more drama.
Comments from netizens included:
- “I mean… He saw that everything had already blown up and still sent more, yet people say the idol did nothing wrong… haha.”
- “Jaemin, it seems like you think your fans are way more well-behaved than they actually are… let’s stop now.”
- “No, but the fact that he thought handing out cash wouldn’t cause problems LOL. At least ask your manager first.”
- “Empty-headed LOL. I didn’t realize he’d be this out of touch with reality.”
- “He should’ve just given out coffee coupons or something—then more fans could’ve received them.”
The incident keeps trending online, dividing opinions on whether it was a simple good-intentioned gesture gone wrong or an avoidable mess.
NCT’s Jaemin | @na.jaemin0813/Instagram
