NHK’s “Awe” at Diet Discovery of Kohaku Producer’s Embezzlement “Ends with ¥125 Million Uncollected”

NHK’s “Kohaku Uta Gassen” (Red and White Singing Contest) is a tradition at New Year’s Eve.

This year, for the first time in 44 years, no talent from the former Johnny’s office participated in the event.

It was 19 years ago in 2004 that the Kohaku Uta Gassen was on the verge of extinction. In 2004, the Kohaku Uta Gassen was threatened by a massive embezzlement case involving its chief producer, Mr. A. Mr. A had been a producer for the Kohaku Uta Gassen since 19 years ago. The chief producer was sentenced to five years in prison for fraud in 2006, and the sentence has been finalized. The scandal is outrageous.

The source of the money embezzled by Mr. A was the public’s subscription fees. When the incident was revealed, nonpayment of subscription fees skyrocketed, and then-Chairman Katsuji Ebisawa resigned. The situation shook the very existence of the Kohaku Uta Gassen,” said a reporter from a weekly magazine who knew the situation at the time.

NHK also filed a civil suit against Mr. A, and his payment of approximately 125 million yen was confirmed. It was not clear what happened after that. ……

NHK Chairman Nobuo Inaba attended a meeting of the General Affairs Committee of the House of Councillors on December 5 as a witness. There, the Upper House member who took questions, Kenichiro Saito of the Upper House faction “Party to Protect the People from NHK,” pursued the aforementioned ¥125 million.

Mr. Inaba responded

We thoroughly investigated real estate, financial assets, and working conditions, and recovered approximately 67 million yen, but since there was no prospect of further recovery, we wrote off approximately 125 million yen of the total amount of damage.

The company responded, “We have recovered approximately 67 million yen, but we no longer expect to recover any more.

Although this was not reported by the major media, it turned out that a huge amount of embezzled money had remained unrecovered.

A national newspaper reporter in charge of political affairs said, “Mr. Saito, when questioned, said that the money had not been recovered.

Mr. Saito is a “subordinate” of Takashi Tachibana of the NHK party. Mr. Tachibana was the one who accused Mr. A of misconduct when he was a member of NHK. He must have confidently brought up the issue in the Diet as a favor to Mr. Saito. Many people may not be satisfied with the fact that the curtain has been drawn on the matter, leaving it unclaimed.

I am sure that many people are not satisfied.

On May 2, NHK dismissed a reporter in his 30s from his post for fraudulently claiming expenses for personal meals and drinks under the guise of news gathering. The NHK said, “NHK, which is supported by subscription fees, has been making a lot of money from the donations from the public.

NHK apologized, saying, “This is an unforgivable act for an employee of NHK, which is supported by subscription fees, and we deeply apologize to our viewers.

NHK has demanded full reimbursement from the reporter and will continue to investigate whether there are any other cases of similar misconduct. NHK will continue to investigate other reporters after receiving guidance from a third-party committee.

A sports newspaper reporter in charge of entertainment said

The reporter in charge of entertainment for a sports newspaper said, “It turns out that the case of Mr. A 19 years ago was not taken as a lesson at all. Even in a general corporation, it is wrong to make fraudulent claims, but since NHK, a public broadcaster, is supported by subscription fees, this kind of misconduct is not legal.

He continued. He continued

NHK’s field reporters are much more open-minded than the public image of them, and they are all excellent. I heard them complaining that they were banned from drinking after the reporter’s fraudulent billing problem. At the same time, a reporter in his 30s who was fired said he was targeted.

He also said that the reporter in his 30s, who was fired, was ‘targeted.

NHK is prepared to sue households and individuals who refuse to pay their subscription fees. In particular, it has filed a lawsuit against the most malicious households, demanding a double surcharge.

If NHK is going to take a hard-line stance, it will first be required to visualize the “flow of money” and crack down on it.