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JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION

Japan must deal with Olympus issue to win trust: Noda

Crime Nov. 12, 2011 - 06:52AM JST ( 22 )

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The Tokyo bourse has put Olympus stock on a watch list for possible delisting.

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22 Comments

1

NuckinFutzNov. 12, 2011 - 08:26AM JST

It is sad that the only way Japan can "win trust" is by buying, bribing, and extorting it! I particularly like how Noda said that Japan should deal with these "inappropriate cases when they surface". This continues to uphold my belief that it's only illegal if you get caught. let's have independent auditors check the books of all major corporations to see what other mass graves can be dug out of the financial closets! Anyone who thinks Olympus is the only one cooking the books has their head in the sand.
0

CrickyNov. 12, 2011 - 09:02AM JST

Systemic malfunction, on so many levels and again and again....highly regrettable
-1

smithinjapanNov. 12, 2011 - 09:19AM JST

“We have to address it sternly when such an inappropriate case surfaces."

Here's a better idea: deal with it BEFOREHAND and ensure such cases DO NOT surface or even have the chance to come into fruition. The old 'see no evil hear no evil' isn't going to work here, clearly.
1

paulinusaNov. 12, 2011 - 09:40AM JST

NuckinFutz : Noda has at least made the appropriate comments so far. Let's hope he can follow through. But so far so good.
0

NetNinjaNov. 12, 2011 - 09:44AM JST

I never trust Japanese companies. Naturally, a company is made up of human beings. Those human beings working there have been designated as Japanese and thus it's difficult to trust the people as well. That is the gravity of the situation. If your word is meaningless, then you are pretty much done. Rich or not, Japan's credit is pretty much shot with the International community.

Noda is smart. As a politician he speaks really well. The deep underlying issue of this whole scandal is the workplace discrimination foreigners experience working at a Japanese company.

Olympus has showed us that Westerners do not receive due process in Japanese companies by Japanese people.
A clear whistleblower, he was shown the door. Even with the title of CEO he was not respected and his position was not recognized. You are not one of us, you don't tell us what to do, you don't ask questions. We put you there for image and facade alone.

For many of us, it would appear as if he shattered racial barriers and the glass ceiling. We must be careful of other cases where things are just for show and there's no backbone behind the action.

Any foreign teacher here in Japan could tell you that at times it's just a puppet show. You might as well have a string in your back that they can pull. As you long as you say the programmed things the appearance will be maintained and you won't be thrown away.

Behind the facade, you would see that such individuals are not making decisions. Programs and ideas are constantly knocked down. If you try to pull rank on a Japanese colleague, you'll quickly learn your place. They always request that you talk to someone else who would pretend to scold or reprimand that individual.

In retrospect, I wonder how smart Mr. Woodford is? I think he's pretty clever to say the least. He exposed Olympus and the company has been brought to it's knees. This was not a major issue until that Japanese pride stepped in. These companies believe they are above the law and can dictate everything. All they had to do was kick Kikukawa out. If he really loved Olympus he could have just confessed. He's 70 something right? They won't send him to jail. The company would be fined, a slap on the wrist by the Japanese government, then back to business as usual.

The end of Olympus is their own doing.
1

minello7Nov. 12, 2011 - 09:44AM JST

Amakudari , springs to mind. Who better to give advice than the people who administer the rules. I agree with NuckiFutZ anyone who thinks Olympus is the only one cooking the books has their head in the sand.
2

tokyokawasakiNov. 12, 2011 - 10:18AM JST

A better headline would have been:

Corruption is rife throughout Japanese business and government: We must do something meaningful and prosecute all guilty parties to win trust: Noda
-1

The Munya TimesNov. 12, 2011 - 10:30AM JST

Japan must deal with Olympus issue to win trust: Noda

Japan is not worse than any other nations, it's just the lies, hypocrisy and the pro-Japan propaganda went too far and the world seemed to buy it.

Certainly, there's no way Japan could ever win trust back. Trust in what? Olympus is not the only one.

Also, recently politicians, government officials and execs need moderators before opening their mouth, to help them at least to make some sense and reach the intellectual level of a average discussion board.
1

tmarieNov. 12, 2011 - 10:35AM JST

And back with the "regret able" comments. What is 'regrettable" is that the rest of the world knows Japan isn't a good place to do business as they are mostly shady with thier deals. Add in amakudari and well, why would anyone invest here? What I find sad is that the locals know all about amakuidari and look the other way - or wait their turn. Pathetic and costing this country a lot of business and stability.
1

gaijinTechieNov. 12, 2011 - 10:43AM JST

Window dress it anyway you like, the bottom line will not change: Corrupt, corrupt, corrupt, corrupt, corrupt...

This is definitely no time to fix things "the Japanese way". That road led to corruption anyway. If they want to restore trust of the western world, they do actions that westerners can relate with correct response to corruption: Prosecution!
-1

smithinjapanNov. 12, 2011 - 10:56AM JST

NetNinja: "Noda is smart. As a politician he speaks really well. The deep underlying issue of this whole scandal is the workplace discrimination foreigners experience working at a Japanese company."

I would say Japan's corporate practices are more the focus of the issue, although of course discrimination fits in there. While I give credit to Noda for his handling on the TPP issue, he really DOES need to handle this sternly, not just say in front of the cameras that someone needs to do so. It might make him unpopular in some circles, but we need a leader here who has the stones to take control effectively and end such corruption (or at least put a dent in it).
0

sillygirlNov. 12, 2011 - 11:55AM JST

it is more than just the olympus debacle - that is just a glaring example right now.
1

tokyokawasakiNov. 12, 2011 - 12:55PM JST

If Japan had a prime minister with the same balls as Woodford, then change just might be possible. Without drastic change from the top down, we all know nothing will change... Sighs! Bowing and token words mean nothing.
1

WeaselNov. 12, 2011 - 01:48PM JST

You mean the bow and regrettable apology wasn't enough? Man, what a tough crowd.
-1

NetNinjaNov. 12, 2011 - 03:10PM JST

Smithinjapan. I see your point and I agree with you. This scandal, although most of us don't know Mr. Woodford, hits a little closer to home for me and possibly other bloggers here.

I see this daily, I've seen good people....hardworking men and women....get terminated or bullied by Japanese companies. Many of these cases are never reported. The stories don't get out of the courtroom. Sometimes, they're settled, sometimes the plaintiff just loses.

With my time in Japan, I've seen them come, I've watched them go. I've seen all kinds of scandalous stuff. Friend of mine, in a car accident. He was riding his bike, got hit by a car. Went to the hospital. While he was in pain , leg up in the air, his company had fined him for not showing up for work, plus docked his salary for the day. His immediate manager didn't even come to the hospital to see if he was okay.

Mr. Woodford is one of the lucky ones. He had some evidence. He can win his wrongful termination suit.
I remember people who wanted to fight but couldn't. Their visas were going to expire.
I remember people who suffered when the Japanese company controlled their housing and in addition to terminating them tried to kick them out of the domicile as well.

I could go on and on (@SmithinJapan and other bloggers) but I'm only trying to stress how personal this story is for a lot of people who aren't Japanese. Olympus makes good cameras and medical equipment, it's sad to see the innocent bystanders go down with the ship but if the shareholders, the employees, and the investigators aren't willing to rip the name plates off the doors of these crooks then they deserve what they get.

It's not hard to oust the upper management. Egg that Mercedes, 500 yen punch it, leave surprises around their offices. They'll get out. That's all it takes.
1

Ted BarreraNov. 12, 2011 - 05:58PM JST

Screw the Olympus issue! Focus on the radiation issue!
0

Richard GustafsonNov. 12, 2011 - 06:08PM JST

There is no authority for a prime minister to take a specific company to task and there should never be an audit of all major corporations by the government. That is not how free societies work.

Corporate corruption is punished by the enforcement of laws based on a guilty verdict in the courts. History shows that honest business is more profitable than corrupt business and the market will regulate and weed out the winners and the losers. The role of government is to enforce contracts and to stay out of the market so that those self regulating forces of profit and loss can act.
0

Elbuda MexicanoNov. 12, 2011 - 09:02PM JST

This Olympus scandal is only the tip of the iceberg, my Japanese friends today told me that the Japanese YAKUZA are behind all of this mess.
2

wanderlustNov. 12, 2011 - 09:50PM JST

One Japanese newspaper was writing that the problems were caused by a foreign executive who embezzled millions of yen out of the company, and was then fired by the responsible board! It turned out that the writer was connected to an Olympus manager, who paid for a lot of advertising in the newspaper, but the article was lapped up by the locals... No correction has been issued to date.

So much for responsible, investigative journalism...
-1

Nicky WashidaNov. 13, 2011 - 09:14AM JST

Wanderlust: which newspaper was that?
-3

KobeGrandadNov. 13, 2011 - 09:28AM JST

Possibly reported in the Swindon Echo.
0

paulinusaNov. 13, 2011 - 10:01AM JST

"Screw the Olympus issue! Focus on the radiation issue!"

Ted : It's essentially the same problem.