TOKYO, June 16 (Xinhua) -- Japan's Kansai Electric Power Co. said Tuesday it has filed a damages suit against five of its former executives over bribery.
The suit of 1.94 billion yen (18 million U.S. dollars) involved a bribery scandal with a former deputy mayor of a town that hosts one of the company's nuclear power plants.
The Osaka-based company has been criticized since it was discovered last September that the late former deputy mayor of Takahama in Fukui Prefecture had bribed executives and staff of Kansai Electric to give work to firms in relations with him.
The lawsuit was filed with the Osaka District Court after the company's board of auditors concluded at a meeting on Monday that the five had failed to perform their duties as board directors.
Those sued include former Chairman Makoto Yagi and two former presidents, Shigeki Iwane and Shosuke Mori.
The company said the damages include 879 million yen (8.19 million dollars) for operational losses involving the suspension of bid participation due to the scandal and 284 million yen (2.64 million dollars) in advertising fees in order to restore public trust.
A third-party investigation concluded in March that the deputy mayor of Takahama, Eiji Moriyama, had been giving out around 360 million yen (3.35 million dollars) of cash and gifts in total, including clothing vouchers and sumo tickets, for more than three decades since 1987.
The company has punished 93 former and current executives and employees for accepting the bribery. Enditem
