After years of planning to bid on one of Japan’s first three integrated resorts (IRs), Yokohama could see its plans unravel based on who wins the mayoral election in August.
The Jiji Press reports that candidate Hachiro Okonogi, chairman of the National Public Safety Commission of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), has indicated that he would oppose an IR bid. The development is surprising because it was the LDP, under former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, that originally pushed for IRs, which were approved in 2016. The move was seen as a way to boost international tourism in Japan.
Yokohama is in the midst of its RFP process, with two consortiums qualified to participate, one headed by Genting Singapore and the other by Melco Resorts & Entertainment.
But the drum beat of opposition to a local casino is getting louder. According to Inside Asian Gaming, depending on who’s elected, “the IR bid could be scrapped on day one of a new term.”
Two independent candidates, city council member Masaki Ota and Akiko Fujimura both oppose an IR. So does Mineyuki Fukuda, a former member of the House of Representatives and current deputy minister of Kanagawa Prefecture. Fukuda, however, is running on a neutral platform when it comes to an IR.
The current mayor, Fumiko Hayashi, now in her third term, supports an IR bid and has reportedly expressed interest in running for a fourth term of office. However, the LDP limits mayors to three consecutive terms.
Meanwhile, the Kanagawa chapter of the Constitutional Democratic Party, which opposes an IR bid, came out in support of Professor Takeharu Yamanaka of the Yokohama City University Academy of Medicine, another independent candidate.
Interestingly, Okonogi, a member of the House of Representatives currently serving his eighth term, is the minister in charge of the Casino Regulatory Commission, putting his anti-casino position at odds with one of his current government functions.
