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Japanese government offices and many companies They celebrated their last day of work in 2022 on Wednesday, with the Centers for Public Health declaring a “disappointing situation” amid an eighth of coronavirus infections and some big companies continuing to reel from scandals.
“There is no sense of celebration,” said Mieko Harada, head of Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward Public Health Center, adding that the center has been struggling to cope with the surge of COVID-19 patients and maintain enough hospital beds since mid-December. .
“I hope this will be the last year we worry about the coronavirus,” said a senior health ministry official who decided to stop attending year-end parties.
Meanwhile, Japan’s biggest advertising agency Dentsu Inc has been embroiled in controversy over last year’s Tokyo Olympics, with staff predicting a tough year ahead as it tries to rebuild trust.
Commuters wearing face masks head to work in front of JR Tokyo Station in central Tokyo on Dec. 28, 2022, their last day of work for the year as health officials remain on high alert for cases of Covid-19. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
Haruyuki Takahashi, a former Dentsu executive and also the organizing committee of the sports event, has been indicted four times in a far-flung bribery scandal. The organization has also been investigated for alleged bid-rigging in contracts related to test events for the Games.
“Just mentioning the company’s name is enough to invite protests as the scandals have shaken people’s confidence,” said an employee of a sports-related business.
The industry’s future was uncertain, the worker added, as plans such as Sapporo’s bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics were in jeopardy.
Among other corporate missteps, the “au” brand mobile phone service operator KDDI Corp. In July, a network outage affected more than 30 million people and users were unable to make emergency calls for a long time.
A KDDI spokesperson said: “To provide stable service, we will enhance operations including system monitoring with artificial intelligence.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Imperial Family is looking to celebrate the coming year by holding its first public New Year’s greeting event in three years after it was canceled due to the pandemic.
Princess Aiko, the only child of Emperor Naruhito, is set to make her first public appearance on January 2 at an event held at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo.
“We want to have a good start to the new year while taking adequate infection control measures,” said a senior official of the Imperial Household Agency.
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