The same age is Yoko Kinoshita and Toko Amamiya…Fuji Television Network in turmoil: “Former Female Announcers Likely to be Selected as Directors” – too surprising true faces.

Did you know that a certain proposal made at the general shareholders meeting of Fuji Media Holdings (FMH, parent company of Fuji Television Network) on June 28 caused a stir within Fuji.

It was former Fuji Television announcer Megumi Sekido, 53, who was nominated for a position on the board of directors. The person who made the proposal was Ms. A, who had just retired from Fuji TV under its early retirement program. Normally, 300 voting rights (30,000 shares; approximately 4,000 shares at the time of the shareholders’ meeting) are required to make a shareholder proposal. It is said that Mr. A ‘may have purchased FMH shares with the retirement money he had just received’ (an FMH shareholder).

What kind of person is Megumi Sekido, whom Mr. A spent a large sum of money to nominate to the board of directors?

Sekido joined Kyodo Television in 1993, a subsidiary of Fuji Television. She became a freelance announcer in 2005 and is still active today. Her classmates include TV Asahi’s Yoko Oshita, 53, and former TBS announcer Toko Amamiya, 52. Anna Sekido is a classmate of Mr. A. Mr. A is, of course, aware of this shareholder’s proposal. Mr. A is an employee who has been in the business field for a long time and is not the type to stand out.

The shareholder’s outlandish proposal to appoint a freelance TV announcer as a director is said to have caused a great deal of consternation among Fuji Television’s upper management.

FMH’s de facto don, Advisor Hisashi Hieda (85), and other executives were horrified. Of course, FMH is opposed to this shareholder proposal. There is almost no chance that it will be approved, FMH has no female directors. In that sense, Mr. A’s proposal is in line with the times.

It is said that at Canon’s general shareholders meeting in March, the reason why the ratio of votes in favor of reappointing CEO Fujio Mitarai almost fell below a majority of 50.59% was because of “opposition to the fact that Canon has no female directors…. …” (Fuji TV insider)

FMH, which was aware of Mr. A’s proposal, sent postcards (see below) to its shareholders prior to the general shareholders’ meeting, inducing them to vote against Mr. A’s proposal. I have held shares for many years, but this is the first time I have received such a postcard” (FMH shareholder).

Furthermore, perhaps to fend off criticism that there are “no female directors,” FMH appointed Fuji Television employee Mina Masatani as a candidate for the board of directors. A Fuji Television source said, “The director candidate is a female director.

“ Ms. Masatani, now 54 years old, is a former secretary to FMH Chairman Masayoshi Miyauchi (79) and is said to be his favorite. He is leading the pack in the battle for promotion among his generation.

FMH executives must have been relieved to hear that Mr. A’s proposal was rejected at the shareholders’ meeting, and Ms. Masatani became FMH’s first female director.