Yokohama residents show their displeasure at the recent event about to occur across the country, and their Mayor is backing them up. According to the locals in the region, they are all against Japan’s government’s latest move to bring a gambling center to the region, which would take place due to the latest announcement. According to the last announcement, Yokohama will be one of the few places granted the IR gambling permit, which will see several commercial gambling centers enter the city.
Mayor earlier promised to follow the will of the people
According to the latest news across the region, several residents have been able to add their signatures to the referendum to abolish the introduction of gambling centers in the city. In her previous statement, the Mayor of the city, Hayashi, said she would respect the people’s decision regarding the Integrated Resort casino.
She notes that if the people want it, she will allow it, and if they don’t like it, she will oppose the move. As it stands now, the Mayor is going back on her word to follow what the people say as she has argued that the introduction of the casino would bring in so much revenue to the people and the city.
She also said that a referendum would damage the benefit that the city hopes to reap with the introduction of the IR casino. Even though the country’s legislative process always takes a long time, everything has been worsened by the coronavirus pandemic that has been ravaging the country since last year.
Mayor states several reasons why the referendum won’t work
With the delay regarding the referendum, notable casinos looking to begin their operations inside Japan have started to pull out of the decision, including Las Vegas Sands. In her most recent statement, Hayashi has noted that the city would not be involved in any ploy, which would reduce the rate at which the innovations are entering the state.
Asides from that, Hayashi has also lamented the cost of conducting such a referendum as it would strain the city’s purse. Finally, Hayashi said that the referendum might be time-wasting at the end of the day because the government had enough power to carry on with their decision even if the people vote against it. As it stands, Yokohama’s entire city needs nothing less than 62,000 signatures to tender their grievances to the Yokohama citizens coalition before moving it to the upper house.
While Japan has earmarked several cities to get the permit, only two cities, Yokohama and Tokyo, stand out as the favorites to win two of the three tickets awarded. Other than those two cities, Nagasaki and Wakayama are the front liners who have showed their intentions for the permits.
