Osaka City’s Whale ‘Yodochan’ Disposal Contract Raises Collusion Suspicions with Contractors

“When we requested disclosure of documents regarding Osaka City’s whale disposal, the documents that came out were completely blackened. It was far from normal,” said Yoshimi Ikkaki of the citizen group “Watchman” in Osaka Prefecture.

In a controversy surrounding the disposal of whale carcasses, Osaka City is facing an unprecedented situation with concerns raised from citizen audits and bid monitoring.

It all started with a sperm whale that strayed into Osaka Bay in January ’23.

 

“Early in the new year, a whale named ‘Yodochan,’ approximately 15 meters long and weighing around 40 tons, was found near the mouth of the Yodo River. It was confirmed dead four days later. The city decided to contract for ¥80.19 million with a commissioned company to sink it in the Kii Channel. However, the initial estimated disposal cost by the city was ¥37.74 million.

It’s common sense to feel it’s odd to pay more than double the initially estimated cost when using public funds. Furthermore, according to lawyers and the city’s investigation results (mentioned later), it was reported that officials unrelated to the department in charge intervened in negotiations to benefit the contractor and that other officials entertained the contractor with meals and alcohol.” (National newspaper social affairs reporter)

Two months instead of the usual two weeks.

In early January this year, Mr. Ikkaki and other citizen groups requested information disclosure from the city to clarify the exchanges between the city hall and the commissioned contractor regarding the whale disposal. However, the disclosure from the city did not progress. Mr. Ikkaki expressed frustration.

“Normally, relevant documents are disclosed within two weeks, but it was repeatedly delayed with requests to wait a little longer. The disclosure finally came in March, two months after the request was made. Moreover, upon reviewing the disclosed documents, many pages were heavily blackened, making it impossible to understand what kind of exchanges took place.”

FRIDAY Digital obtained 157 pages of disclosure from the city, but documents detailing negotiations with the contractor and specifications related to whale disposal agreements between the city and the contractor were also extensively blackened.

When Mr. Ikkaki asked the city about the reason for the blackouts, he reportedly received this kind of response.

“They said they couldn’t disclose it because it contained personal information. Moreover, they gave excuses like (if disclosed) viruses could enter the emails’ to justify why the email addresses of the officials who communicated with the city hall and the contractor regarding whale disposal were blacked out. I thought there must be a significant reason why they can’t disclose it.”