I propose request, rather than demand. If you don't agree with the maintainers choice and it is a legitimate issue, you could raise the issue with the Debian community and try to get some more support. Alternatively, suggest a fix that meets both requirements (such as a -full package).

There is no get out jail card here... just people volunteering their time, and a subset of users that feel they have some sort of entitlement. If I volunteer to pick up trash at my local park, would you demand that I pick up your garbage? No.. that would make you a jerk.

I'm an inactive Debian Maintainer and retired Ubuntu core dev, so perhaps my views are biased.. but I really think people should show these volunteers more respect.