Nakama Junta of Johnny’s WEST who is a regular on the TV show Yonchan TV (MBS) commented on his feelings regarding the press conference that was held on Thursday this week.
Nakama, who had watched the press conference in full, mentioned feeling a bit uneasy about the situation both personally and as a talent of the company, and admitted to being ambivalent about the plan as presented by the new head management going forward.
Specifically, what caused this mixed feeling was the fact that Higashiyama Noriyuki was going to be the next president. Speaking frankly about the issue, Nakama said
I wondered if the next president should be a person with such deep connection and affiliation with the company, and whether an outsider would not have been better. One of the main findings of the investigation from last week was that much of the issues were caused by the fact that this was a family-run business, and while Higashiyama is not directly related, he certainly is deeply affiliated. It’s also true that I would deeply miss him as a fellow performer as well, one whose performances on stage I loved very much to this day.
In addition, I wanted to keep the name Johnny’s going forward on a personal level both for my group and the company, but I recognize that I am only able to say this because I was not a victim of the abuse. Should there be even a single person who is either hurt or is disgusted by the name, I honestly think we should change it. Even if it would take time, we should absolutely listen to the opinions of everyone involved and take the right course of action.
