Power harassment troubles are breaking out at the Tenjin Festival in Osaka, one of the three major festivals in Japan…!

On July 25, the Rikutogyo, the main event of Tenjin Matsuri, one of the three major festivals in Japan, was held for the first time in three years, since 1919, before the COVID-19 crisis.

The Tenjin Festival is a major event that attracts more than one million visitors every year, and Osaka Tenmangu Shrine, the sponsor of the festival, is affectionately known as “Tenjin-san. However, it was revealed that a certain trouble had occurred behind the scenes of such a traditional ritual.

The current organization is extraordinary. I have never heard of such a situation in the long history of the festival.

This is something I have never heard of in the long history of the Tenjin Festival,” said a person who has been involved in the festival for a long time. What exactly do you mean by “abnormal situation”?

In the past few years, many people involved in the Tenjin Matsuri, including four board members, have left the festival, and the festival site is in turmoil. The reason for this is the personalization and harassment of the organization by Mr. X, who is the secretary-general of the Taiko Chūka. The “Taiko Chu” is an organization under the direct control of Tenmangu Shrine with a staff of 800 people, and its role is to manage the Tenjin Festival. The head of the “Taiko Chu” position is called “So-dai,” but the person who is actually in charge of the festival is the number two person, Mr. X, the secretary general.

The people involved in the festival say that the power harassment of Mr. X began to become apparent on July 25, 2007, the day of the previous festival. A member of the Tenjin Festival management staff recalls the horror of the situation.

A minor problem occurred at the festival site toward the end of the festival. I heard that it was really just a minor thing, that a mid-level member who was moving around to manage the festival interfered with a senior executive. Mr. X, who was then deputy secretary-general of Taiko Chu, came to the scene and was furious, demanding that the member and his superiors ‘clean up your act! One of the members was given an unreasonable house arrest and the board members were forced to withdraw from the festival. The place where Mr. X threatened was, of all places, the precincts of Tenmangu Shrine where God is located.

Mr. X was later “promoted” to the position of secretary general of the “Taiko Chū” in April of last year. However, it is said that there was actually an uproar behind the scenes. Another person involved in the Tenjin Festival testified.

The general manager of the “Taiko Chu” passed away in January of last year, and a new general manager was decided upon. At the board meeting, Mr. X said, ‘I would like to recommend Mr. A as the new general manager, and Tenmangu Shrine has requested that Mr. A take the position. However, there was no way that Tenmangu Shrine could interfere with the general manager of the “Taiko Chu”. So the two board members countered, ‘Is it really Tenmangu Shrine’s appointment?’ and went to Tenmangu Shrine to confirm it,” he said.

However, at another meeting of the board of directors, Mr. X’s words fell on deaf ears.

Mr. X suddenly said, ‘The board member who went to the Tenmangu Shrine for confirmation should be suspended. When they protested, Mr. X threatened them, saying, ‘I’ll destroy you all. In the end, the two were suspended for five years and banned from participating in the Tenjin Festival. The two directors, who were not satisfied with their punishment, also declined to participate in the festival. Subsequently, Mr. A was appointed as the new general manager and Mr. X as the new secretary-general.

Why does Mr. X’s arrogance go unchecked?

In fact, Mr. X used to be a senior member of a well-known gang in the Chugoku region. Everyone is intimidated by his background. There was a board member who said at a meeting, ‘Is it appropriate for a former gangster to serve as executive director? There is no one who can oppose Mr. X to his face anymore, and I heard that this year’s festival was held under a complete dictatorship.

(The lawyer also did not respond by the deadline.) FRIDAY contacted Mr. X directly to confirm the truth of the power harassment scandal, but he only replied, “I will have my lawyer contact him. He admitted that Mr. X belonged to a gang, but did not answer any other questions.

The Osaka Temmangu Shrine, which sponsors the festival, responded as follows: “The officers of the Taiko Chūtaikai have been suspended.

We are not involved in the suspension of the “Taiko Chū” officers. In addition, there is no fact that Tenmangu Shrine appointed the general manager of the “Taiko Chu”. （I do not know (about Mr. X’s threats). （I do not know (about Mr. X’s background), but I understand that in 2005, a rule was established to exclude gangs from the festival and that the “Taiko Chū” is following that rule.

I hope a healthy “Tenjin Festival” returns. ……

From theAugust12, 2022issue ofFRIDAY