On August 14, Akita Prefecture announced that a section manager-level employee (55) who participated remotely during a press interview at the Ministry of Industry and Labor had given a false explanation about where he was staying at the time of his participation, etc. On the same day, he was demoted two levels to manager and given a six-month suspension and disciplinary action.
There is also a person in a bathrobe next to me.
The prefecture also issued a strict warning to Gen-etsu Takahashi, director of the Ministry of Industry and Labor, for his responsibility to supervise and supervise employees.
The employee participated remotely online in the department's briefing for the press regarding the bid for an AI data center held on the afternoon of August 6th, citing that he was ``at home on vacation.''
At first, he turned off his camera because he was wearing relaxed clothing, but another employee urged him to turn it on if possible. Then, the remote screen showed an employee wearing a white bathrobe, a person next to him wearing the same bathrobe, and the employee smoking after speaking.
Behind the staff member shown on the screen is a wall with an old-fashioned arabesque pattern that is not often seen in ordinary houses, and when this scene was reported on TV news, many people on social media commented that it looked like a room in a love hotel.
“At home with my wife” is a lie.
As a result, Director Takahashi held a press conference on the 7th and apologized, saying, ``My response to the staff was inappropriate,'' and the department and the Prefectural Human Resources Division continued to interview the staff.
The staff will travel from Akita to Tokyo from August 4th to 6th to coordinate the bid to attract an AI data center. I returned to Akita on the morning of the 6th, but instead of visiting the prefectural office, I went straight home.
In the afternoon of the same day, the Ministry of Industry, Labor and Welfare was hurriedly scheduled to hold a press briefing regarding the data center bid, and staff members expressed their intention to participate remotely.
In subsequent interviews, the employee admitted that the location was a love hotel, and that the person next to him was not his wife, but the woman with whom he was having an affair, despite the staff's initial explanation of his ``home'' and ``the person next to him was his wife.''
The employee's request for leave was made on the night of the 6th after participating remotely from a love hotel, but Manager Takahashi explained, ``I don't think this is a problem because the employee applied for the leave after the fact.''
2 trillion yen data center
As of the morning of the 14th, the prefecture had received a total of 145 complaints and inquiries regarding staff issues and data center plans.
Governor Kenta Suzuki commented, ``The extremely inappropriate interview response by a senior official of the Ministry of Industry and Labor lacks the time and ethics of a public servant, and I deeply apologize for causing the citizens of the prefecture a very unpleasant experience.''
The planned AI data center is expected to cost around 2 trillion yen because it will install many servers equipped with expensive, high-performance GPUs (image processing units) that are essential for AI, and countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are showing a positive attitude toward investment.
An industrial park currently under construction in the northern part of Akita City has been proposed as a potential construction site. Section manager-level staff have been coordinating the invitation.
