Top officials of the Nishio city government in Aichi Prefecture apologize at a news conference on May 11 for prioritizing a pharmacy company chief and his wife for COVID-19 vaccines. (Keizo Fukatsu)
NISHIO, Aichi Prefecture The city government here apologized on May 11 for attempting to let a prominent businessman and his wife jump the line for COVID-19 vaccinations.
Nishio Vice Mayor Yoshihide Kondo said at a news conference that he tried to “do a favor” for Hirokazu Sugiura, the 70-year-old founder and chairman of pharmacy giant Sugi Holdings Co., and his wife because “the city has received assistance (from the company) in many forms.”