Yokohama City's mayor, Takeharu Yamanaka, has been found guilty of extreme power harassment against his staff. A third-party committee confirmed multiple instances of severe power harassment, with Yamanka calling employees "human trash," "useless junk," and referring to female staff with the derogatory term "obasan" (old lady). The committee condemned Yamanakia's remarks as blatant character assassination and misogyny. The report also highlighted Yamanak's low awareness of human rights and a climate of fear that led to physical and mental breakdowns at city hall. The scandal first came to light in January when the city's former human resources director blew the whistle. A survey targeted 746 current and former employees revealed that over 60 percent had witnessed or heard of suspected power harassment.