Independent] Expo EV Bus Sales Company Allegedly “Offered Entertainment in Thanks for Concealing Defects”… “Internal Document” with City Hall and Bus Company Obtained.

EV Motors Japan, the company that sells the EV buses introduced at the Kansai Expo in Osaka, has been experiencing a series of problems, including brake failure and loss of control of the steering wheel. Automotive journalist Kumiko Kato, who has been following up on the company’s series of problems, goes into the “new allegations.

The company has been accused of various problems!　The operation manager has strictly told us, ‘Never tell anyone outside the company about the problems with the EV buses, and we don’t want any press coverage. All the crew members hate the faulty buses and wish that they would stop using them, but the operation manager completely ignores them. Whenever we receive inquiries from the media, we are told, ‘There is nothing wrong with our EV buses. They are running smoothly.

This is the opinion of a veteran bus driver with more than 20 years of experience working for a bus company in the Tokyo metropolitan area that operates EV Motors Japan (EVMJ) buses. The company is headquartered in Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture, and sells EV buses imported from three Chinese manufacturers (Wisdom, Hengtian, and Aichuwa) in Japan.’ The company has been selling its buses in Japan since 2010, and more than 320 buses, including 190 related to the Osaka-Kansai Expo, have been delivered to bus companies and municipal transportation bureaus throughout Japan.

The author has interviewed more than 100 people involved in the project, including current and former EVMJ employees, the bus companies that introduced the vehicles, bus crews, and Osaka Expo officials, and FRIDAY Digital published an article on October 13 of last year titled, “A Series of ‘Uncontrollable Problems’ with Chinese Buses Purchased in Large Numbers for Osaka Expo. The article reported, along with video footage, on a surprising accident in which a driver struggled to control the steering wheel, but the bus lost control of the vehicle and slammed into the median strip.

Under such circumstances, a new suspicion surfaced in the EVMJ. This was the “hush-mouth” allegation revealed by the driver at the beginning of the report.

An “answer” that felt strange.

In fact, when the author interviewed operators who had introduced EVMJ buses, he was almost always met with either a refusal or a response to the effect that the buses were “running smoothly. The same is true of a series of accidents that occurred in April 2011 with EVMJ’s “Wisdom Large 10.5m” buses, in which the brake chamber (an important component of the air brake system installed in large trucks and buses) fell off while the bus was in motion. Naha Bus, a bus company in Okinawa Prefecture that had installed the system, told the author in an interview,

Naha Bus, a bus company in Okinawa Prefecture that had installed the system, told this writer, “The buses are currently operating without any problems. Please ask EVMJ.

The company’s only response was, “We cannot answer about the brake chambers falling off.

Naha Bus is a major operator of buses for local routes and chartered buses for sightseeing in the prefecture. According to the documents we obtained, the company purchased three EVMJ buses between March 2010 and March 2011. However, the author has recently obtained an internal document from EVMJ that contains what appears to be a “thank you” to the company for “keeping quiet” about the purchase.

Contents of the “dinner party” held by EVMJ

The author obtained an expense application form from EVMJ. It states that on January 22 of this year, EVMJ employees applied for 5,500 yen x 5 people, for a total of 27,500 yen, to hold a dinner party with Naha Bus staff. Noteworthy is the “purpose” written on the application. It stated as follows. (The typos below are in the original.)

Naha Bus has repeatedly stated in a series of questionnaires and interviews regarding a series of general inspections and recalls that there have been no (or few) defects and that they continue to operate safely. This is due to a top-down approach from Mr. Tanaka, President of Daiichi Kotsu Sangyo Group, who told us not to make any comments that would be detrimental to EVM in terms of our response outside the company! I am told that this is because Mr. Tanaka, President of Daiichi Kotsu Sangyo Group, has instructed us top-down not to make any comments that would be detrimental to EVM’s external relations. I, too, feel a strong sense of gratitude to Mr. Kage, Mr. Ogawa, the sales office manager, and all the staff in charge.

The “general inspection” mentioned here refers to the general inspection order issued by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism last September, and the “recall” refers to the brake hose recall reported by EVMJ to the Ministry in November of the same year. In addition, Naha Bus is a subsidiary of Daiichi Kotsu Sangyo.

Attorney Shuji Suzuki of SINTO Law Office, an expert on traffic accident issues, prefaces his remarks by saying, “Although we cannot make a determination based on these materials alone, ……,” and points out that, assuming the statements in these internal documents are true, several legal issues are possible.

It is possible that the company, although it is in a position to ensure safety and disclose appropriate information, may be evaluated as having taken measures to keep defects from being fully disclosed to the public in order to avoid any disadvantage to the company, such as the suspension of bus service. Such actions prioritize the maintenance of relationships with business partners at the expense of the company’s own safety and credibility, and as a result, benefit the business partners while putting the company at risk of damage. Therefore, with regard to the executives and employees of Dai-Ichi Kotsu Sangyo and Naha Bus, it is possible that they are guilty of a breach of trust against their own company. In addition, if it is a false response to a recall report, it may be in violation of the Road Trucking Vehicle Law. If true, this would be an unforgivable act that could result in the loss of human life.

If EVMJ was aware of the nature and extent of the defect and continued to deliver vehicles and conduct business, there may be room for fraud charges, depending on the content of the explanation. Was there any actual lobbies in the Naha buses that had been introduced, and if so, what kind of lobbies were they? I think this is a matter that must be investigated.

(Construction has been suspended since September of last year.) “The person in charge and other departments in charge have been holding the meeting.

The author also obtained an expense application for the dinner with the names of four people, including the chief of the public transportation section and the section chief of Nago City Hall in Okinawa Prefecture. Nago City has so far purchased six small Wisdom vehicles for the “Nagomaru” community bus. Five of them are still in operation. According to the application, the meals are “membership fee” and the EVMJ will pay for any shortfall. 5,500 yen x 6 people, for a total of 33,000 yen, was applied for. In the purpose column, the following is written. (Original text in Japanese below)

[Joon] From last year to this year, we have received many complaints of complaint, including the third stoppage of vehicle operation due to a motor failure and a blown fuse in the air conditioner, which caused the vehicle to be out of service for several days. We have heard from the council and citizens that there have been so many stoppages due to breakdowns that they have asked us to return the vehicles, as Chikugo City did, and ask for their money back to seriously consider the introduction of diesel buses. At this time, the person in charge and other departments in charge are holding the matter in abeyance. While this is not an apology, we will hold a dinner to improve our relationship and friendship in the future.

The term “as in Chikugo City” refers to the return of school buses in Chikugo City, Fukuoka Prefecture. The city introduced four school buses (manufactured by Hengtian) from EVMJ last April, but due to a series of problems, all the buses were taken out of service and replaced with conventional diesel buses only two weeks after the introduction.

According to the application form, the company is paying for the buses, but in reality it is the company that is paying for the shortfall, isn’t it? Even if it is formally a membership fee, the company is expected to bear the shortfall, and the fact that it was submitted as an expense in advance means that it can be evaluated as entertainment in real terms.

Furthermore, given the fact that there is a statement that reads, “The department in charge is having the matters that should have been explained to the outside world, such as defects and complaints from the public,” a circumstance that infers a consideration relationship between the provision of benefits and the response in the course of duties can be recognized. If the facts are as stated in the application, it is suspected that he received entertainment as compensation for his duties, and this is a case in which the applicability of the requirements for the crime of bribery under the Penal Code is strongly disputed.

Regarding the timing of the dinner, the recall took place at the end of November of the previous year, and the dinner was held in January. If the recall was made at the end of November of the previous year and the dinner was held in January, it is not surprising that bribery would be suspected more strongly. Furthermore, even if criminal liability is not reached, we cannot deny the possibility that the manner of the relationship with the interested party constitutes an act of discrediting a local public official.”

We do have dinner parties.”

When we sent a letter of inquiry to EVMJ, we received the following response by the deadline.

When asked about the fact of the dinner meeting at Nago City Hall and the “retention of faulty information within the department in charge” as stated in the documents, the company responded, “There is a fact that we had a dinner meeting with Nago City to take over the responsibility for the change of the person in charge,” while acknowledging the existence of the dinner meeting.

He then acknowledged the existence of the dinner meeting and responded, “Nago City is also paying for the cost of the dinner. In addition, not only do we explain the causes of accidents and breakdowns to our customers, including Nago City, but as you can see from our website, we also make the necessary public announcements, and there is no fact that we are covering up accidents and breakdowns.

Nago City acknowledged the dinner and responded, “It was an expense-paid dinner, and we are not aware of any shortfall. As for the buses that caused further problems,

The company has had motor problems and air conditioner malfunctions, but they have been taken care of on a case-by-case basis,” he said. There have been no complaints from the council or citizens as in other cities.

He added, “It is not a matter to be reported to the council, and there is no need to explain to the public. （The company’s response concluded with the following statement: “The EVMs are currently operating normally, with no problems occurring.

At the end of the response letter, it was stated in bold letters, “With regard to the contents of the EVMJ internal documents, the city sincerely regrets that the matter was handled as described.

Regarding the dinner meeting with Naha Bus, EVMJ responded in this manner after acknowledging that it had been held.

We did have a dinner meeting to take over the responsibility following the change of the person in charge (omitted). There is no record that the dinner was held for the purpose of seeking a cover-up as you have asked, nor is there any fact that the operation of the bus is being continued by concealing a serious defect.

The Naha Bus side also admitted to holding the dinner meeting, but stated that it was a face-to-face meeting following a change of responsibility and that they would not respond to the breakdown of payment. On top of that, as to whether they made false reports on recalls, general inspections, and past interviews with the author,

He stated, “There is no fact that our company was directly investigated by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism for a general inspection order or recall as you have pointed out. We have not received any media coverage or inquiries. There is no fact that we made a false report, and there is no fact that we had a dinner as a thank-you.

He replied, “I have not received any media interviews or inquiries. Regarding the vehicles currently in operation, Dai-Ichi Kotsu Sangyo stated that “no defects have been found at this time,” and that it “made a comprehensive judgment based on the information available at the time” regarding the circumstances surrounding the introduction of the vehicles.

In response to a question about whether President Tanaka had actually given instructions to Naha Bus, Dai-Ichi Kotsu Sangyo replied, “There is no fact that any instructions or notices of the kind you have pointed out were given within our company.

Although the dinner meetings were real, both companies denied the “hush-mouth” allegations. However, an EVMJ official revealed, “In addition to the face-to-face meetings of the people in charge, these types of dinners have also taken place.

As stated in the expense application, we entertain our clients. The way it is done is to go to the business partner, buy them a meal, and build a relationship with them. In fact, these are not the only two dinners that took place in January. I have heard that several dinners have been held for several bus companies and local governments.

A thorough investigation of the facts is required.