Should public servants , police , firemen etc. accept free items ?

This  question  sounds  like  a  personal  preference  of  the  business  or  person  making  the  gesture  of  a  free  gift  or  soda  or  free  lunch .  But  is  it ?  Many  private  clubs  across  the  country  terminate  employees  who  accept   a  tip , gratuity  or  free  item .  To  some,  this  is  hard  to  understand  because  it  goes  against  free  enterprise  or  paying  someone  extra  for  providing  good  service  .  So  it  would  seem.  
Why  would  a  private  country  club  terminate  an  employee  for  accepting  a  gift  or  even  a tip ?One  would  think  members  of  a  private  club  have  the  money  to  tip  an  employee , so  what  is  wrong  with  this ?  Contrary  to  practical  belief, it  is  exactly  why  private  clubs  have  such  a  termination  policy  for  accepting  tips .  Private  clubs  have  built  in  gratuities  and  by  design  or  practice  , cash  is  never  needed  at  a  private  club .  In  fact ,  Sunset  Country  Club  has  a  history  of  one  of  it’s  famous  early  members  , August  Busch  ,  whose  own  personal  graciousness  to  employees  gained  him  disfavor  by  other  members  of  the  club  because  they  could  not  keep  up  with  the  level  of  gratuity  .  This  making  it  seem  like  his  own  personal  private  club  , with  the  other  members  feeling  like  second  class  citizens  within  the  club .  
How  other  members ( citizens )  of  a  small  City , like  Sunset  Hills , feel  about  other  citizens   or  businesses  possibly  receiving   better  service  than  they  receive , as  result  of  it’s  public  servants  accepting  any  gratuities , is  important .   There  is  also  a  small  entity  ,called  the  Internal  Revenue  Service  ,  that  may  be  concerned  about  such  gifts  or  gratuities  being  taxable  income .  Public  perception  of  receiving  equal  service  and  protection  is  paramount .  Do  you  believe  there  are  citizens  receiving  better  than  equal  treatment  or  service  from  public  servants ?
Whether  you  answered  yes  or  no  to  above ,  realize  that  you  will  never  know  how  all  the  citizens  would  answer . Which  is  why  the  strong  responsibility  is  on  the  public  servant  ,  no  matter  what  his  or  her  tax  paid  salary  is .  The  next  time  you  see  or  hear  about  any  free  item  or  service , whether  while  on  duty  or  not ,  remember  how  nearly  9000  other  people  may  feel  about  it .