A Thursday session of the Nagasaki prefectural assembly produced one question on why two rejected suitors for that Japanese community’s tilt at having a casino resort had been complaining the request-for-proposal (RFP) phase was faulty. That is according to information collated by GGRAsia’s Japan correspondent.
Two assembly members belonging to the Liberal Democratic Party – which governs at national level – made a number of queries about the progress of the local casino policy in Nagasaki, during a formal question-and-answer session.
One of the spurned suitors as a casino partner for Nagasaki, Hong Kong-listed investment group Oshidori International Holdings Ltd said in its first-half results filed on August 30, its experience of bidding to collaborate with the prefecture on a casino complex had led it to “question whether there have been serious ethical irregularities” in the process.
Nagasaki prefecture told GGRAsia in a recent emailed statement in response to our enquiry, that the selection process for a private-sector partner on an integrated resort (IR) had been conducted fairly. On Thursday, officials from the prefectural government attending the assembly meeting reaffirmed that the RFP process had been “fair and transparent”.
It was reported in Japanese media that another of the rejected contenders – Niki Chyau Fwu (Parkview) Group, a Japanese enterprise – had also questioned the integrity of Nagasaki’s selection process.
On August 30, Nagasaki stated it had signed what it termed a “master agreement” with Casinos Austria International Japan Inc for the latter to develop and operate an IR in the prefecture.
Earlier that month, the Casinos Austria group had said it wanted the Nagasaki venue to have 220 gaming tables and 2,200 slot machines.
Nagasaki has said it expects to make its own submission to the national government by spring 2022. Up to three casino resorts will be permitted in Japan, under the liberalisation framework.
