Focus: Dentsu Makes Large Donations to Tokyo Tender and Lobbying Activities Violate IOC Regulations | Reuters

[Tokio / Nueva York, 15 de Reuters]- Dentsu, a major advertising agency, is still investigating bribery allegations about bidding for the 2013 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.4324.TReuters revealed that he had been involved in activities that could violate the rules of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which requires “neutrality”, such as donating more than 600 million yen to the bidding activity in Tokyo.

According to bank records seen by Reuters, in 2013 Dentsu deposited around 670 million yen into the Tokyo Olympics Nominations Committee account as a donation. In addition, he led the lobbying activities for some IOC members who have the right to vote for the host city decision on behalf of the Japanese camp, several people involved in the invitation committee’s lobbying activities told Reuters.

Dentsu has participated in international sporting events in the context of many years of relations with the IOC. To ensure the fairness and neutrality of its bidding activities, the IOC has established a Code of Conduct (Article 10) to prevent conflicts of interest and requires global sponsors and marketing partners to refrain from supporting or promoting specific cities. However, Dentsu’s active support for the tendering activity in Tokyo may deviate from the IOC guidelines.

In a Reuters interview, Dentsu acknowledged that its activities did not violate IOC guidelines. The company responded, “We provide advice and information whenever the committee requests it,” and said its participation in the invitation activities was not beyond the scope of normal operations.

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Dentsu has strong connections and business relationships not only with the IOC but also with world sports organizations such as World Athletics (World Athletics Federation, renowned International Athletics Federation), International Swimming Federation, International Football Federation and outstanding athletes. The sport-related business is one of the main businesses that support the management of the company.

It goes without saying that the Tokyo Olympics held in their own country are a great business opportunity for the company. Following the decision to hold in Tokyo, the company was appointed a marketing agency by the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Since then, the company has played a central role in planning and publicity activities for the Tokyo Games and has already increased its participation in the Olympics by collecting sponsorship fees of more than 300 billion yen from each company.

Regarding the donation made to the Tokyo Tenders Committee, Dentsu confirmed the fact of the donation, saying: “We made a donation after taking the appropriate internal procedures in response to the request for support requested by the Tenders Committee to commercial companies. “. However, he did not clarify the amount of money and the use of the funds.

Regarding Dentsu’s involvement, the IOC said that “Dentsu was not a marketing partner of the IOC” between 2011 and 2013, when the Tokyo camp was attractive. According to the IOC, “(Dentsu) had a contract with the IOC to provide services not related to the offer of any city.”

However, according to records seen by Reuters, a third-party committee of the Japan Olympic Committee (JOC) conducted an interview with Dentsu executives in 2016 as part of an investigation related to an alleged bribery over the tender decision. Among them, Kiyoshi Nakamura, CEO who oversaw Dentsu’s sports business, testified that the company was a marketing partner of the IOC at the time of the invitation.

In the survey, he responded that the IOC had an “adult understanding” about Dentsu’s role in cooperation with the Tokyo Nominations Committee. He also revealed that the IOC “said not to appear at the table” in that sense.

In addition, Mr. Nakamura stated that he provided the information of the IOC members to the invitation committee to the third party committee. He said that he provided such information without compensation, saying “Dentsu knows best” and “I thought it would be good for Japan.”

Dentsu lobby activity has also confirmed three people who were actually involved in the activity. According to them, Dentsu was leading the lobbying activities for IOC members who had a relationship with the International Land Federation and the International Water Federation at the time.

One of them is Mr. Haruyuki Takahashi, a former boss of Mr. Nakamura, who participated in the lobbying activities as a member of the invitation committee. In response to Reuter’s interview, Mr. Nakamura was a member of the IOC and president of the International Water Federation, Mr. Julio Cesar Magrione from Uruguay, and Mr. Sergei Bubka, former world high jump champion from Ukraine and Senior Vice President of the World Land Federation. He noted that he was in charge of attaching the support of.

Dentsu has not publicly provided a detailed explanation of its involvement in the Tokyo bidding activity. However, in reality, it goes deeper than the official explanation that “provided advice and information” (company public relations), and it raises the background of the active movement behind the scenes of the bid for Tokyo.

On these points, Mr. Nakamura did not respond directly to Reuter’s question. Dentsu also said: “There is no fact that our employees have approached the president of the Magrione International Swimming Federation and the vice president of the Bubka International Earth Federation (currently the World Earth Federation).”

“I have never worked under (external) pressure,” Magrione told Reuters. “I have always acted in a correct and ethical manner,” said Bubka, saying that he did not participate in the bid for the Tokyo Olympics.

The IOC has established an ethics committee to determine if there is a conflict of interest, but declines to answer Reuter’s question about whether the ethics committee has investigated Dentsu’s activities surrounding the Tokyo bid.

The French prosecutor’s investigation into the Tokyo Olympics bid has largely focused on how the funds suspected of being used for bribes were provided, officials in the bidding activity said, according to people familiar with the investigation. He is also very interested in the role that Dentsu played.

In response to the Reuters interview, Secretary General Emmanuel Fress of the French National Financial Prosecutor’s Office declined to comment on the ongoing investigation. “So far we have not heard from the authorities,” Dentsu said.

The IOC has not commented on whether bribes were used in connection with the bid for the Tokyo Olympics. Both the IOC and the Japanese government say they are cooperating with French investigative authorities.

One of the focuses of the investigation, according to people familiar with the matter, is the decision of Tan Tong Han, president of Black Tiding in Singapore. He is suspected of sending around $ 2.3 million to his son, Papa Masatta Diak, to encourage former World Land Federation president Ramin Diak, who was a member of the IOC in 2013, to vote for Tokyo. In g.

The money is said to have been paid by the Black Tiding Nominations Committee, which was represented by Mr. Tan. Dentsu participated in the invitation committee’s decision to hire Mr. Tan as a consultant, as recorded by the third-party committee of the JOC.

Mr. Nakamura from Dentsu sought opinions on Mr. Tan from two members of the invitation committee in the JOC third-party committee investigation and assessed that Mr. Tan had done a good job at other major sporting events. Cleared up.

Furthermore, Mr. Tan believed that he would “retain” the votes of the IOC members, including Mr. Bubuka, and was hired by Mr. Shusuke Higuchi, former director of the Sports and Youth Office of the Ministry of Education, Culture , Sports, Science and Technology at that time. It is said that he conveyed his support. However, Mr. Nakamura told the third party committee: “I don’t think I have told you the story of reading the votes until now.”

Mr. Higuchi and Mr. Kohei Torita, then Deputy Secretary General of the Nominations Committee, told Reuters that Dentsu’s opinion was the key to hiring Mr. Tan. Mr. Torita responded to the interview with the nomination committee. third that when Mr. Nakamura said, “(This consultant) is really good,” he said, “I had a desire to do (hire).”

According to JOC investigation records seen by Reuters, Torita said he had been hired by Tan in July 2013 and “had a lot of interventions at Dentsu,” and Dentsu officials wrote reports and invoices. He also noted that he was acting as an agent. Mr. Torita and Mr. Nakamura from Dentsu told a third party committee that Dentsu was in frequent contact with Mr. Tan.

Dentsu denies taking an active role in hiring Mr. Tan and coordinating contact with him. The company said: “There is no fact that we were the point of contact for communication with Mr. Tan by the invitation committee.”

Higuchi and Torita from the Tender Committee did not answer detailed questions about what they had told the JOC Third Party Committee, but only stated that the relationship between the Tender Committee and Dentsu was appropriate.

Tan did not respond when Reuters asked for comment. Daddy Masatta Diak denied cheating and told Reuters he would not cooperate in the investigation of the Tokyo Olympics. Simon Nijae, a lawyer for Ramin Diak of France, told Reuters that Diak had nothing to do with the alleged bribery at the Tokyo Games.

The JOC Third Party Commission released a final report on September 1, 2016 on whether or not corruption was committed in the bid for Tokyo, and stated that there was no misconduct. Records of the investigation, including interviews, have not been passed on to the French prosecutor’s office conducting the corruption investigation, according to people familiar with the matter. “We are not in a position to provide it to the French investigative authorities,” the JOC explained.

The French investigative authorities have targeted former JOC president Tsunekazu Takeda for a “formal investigation” on suspicion of involvement in acts of corruption. Mr. Takeda was the chair of the bidding committee in 2013 and approved Mr. Tan’s employment. According to his attorney, Stephen Bonifasi, Takeda has denied cheating.

According to third-party committee records, immediately after the IOC Buenos Aires General Assembly decided to bid for Tokyo in September 2013, Dentsu officials contacted the people involved in the bidding committee in Tokyo and told them. They said Tan requested an additional payment. ..

A month later, Tan received a second payment of $ 1.3 million from the Bidding Commission, according to bank records. Mr. Torita, who created the contract for this payment, told JOC’s third party committee that it was a “success fee” paid to the consultant for the success of the Tokyo tender.

However, the contract dated October 4, 2013, read by Reuters, states that this amount is a payment for a report that analyzes the activity of the tender, and that the funds given to Mr. Tan are the success fee. There was no mention.