Mar 19 (Fri): Reclamation work cost for the U.S. military base in Henoko has soared by 60% in 2.5 years since the onset. / Kawaguchi Mayumi-san sang on the sea of Awa.

The new document submitted by the Defense Ministry revealed that they had increased the construction cost to build the new base at Henoko tremendously again. The paper that the Ministry of Defense submitted at the nonpartisan meeting of opposition parties held on Mar 19 showed that they made 13 changes to the contract for the reclamation work at the Henoko area. The deal started at 25.9 billion yen in 2018, but by the end of September 2020, it soared by 60 percent to 41.6 billion yen. The Ministry claimed that the increase was due to the security cost and the different materials used for the reclamation and transportation method. The amount was changed repeatedly with the same company without opening new bids and has functioned as the no-bid contract in effect.

Takayoshi Igarashi, Emeritus professor at Hosei University, a specialist in the study of public projects, harshly criticizes: “Although it’s not usual that the contract is changed, there is a possibility that they would increase the figure limitlessly in the case of reclamation work at Henoko. The contract has been altered many times with the same contractor in an impromptu way, and nobody can determine the final amount, which is extremely abnormal,” he says.

Now the Ministry of Defense estimates the construction of the new base as 930 billion yen. Although it’s a part of the entire plan, if the cost for a particular area soars by 60 percent in only two and a half years, how much will it become eventually in 12 years of the construction period? In a trial calculation, Okinawa Prefecture estimates that the total cost would be 2 trillion 550 billion yen at minimum. The people want the government with common sense to use our tax money to stop the COVID-19 pandemic to save the people’s lives, rather than for constructing a military base for a foreign state.

(In front of the Camp Schwab Gate)

As the number of the participants visiting from the other prefectures has increased, nearly 40 people started the sit-in at 8:30 am. It’s warm. We felt sweaty by just sitting there. Yamauchi-san, a former physical education instructor, took a leadership role to cheer up the participants. With three rounds of deliveries, a total of 157 trucks brought in the construction materials.

(In front of the Camp Schwab Gate)

Kawaguchi Mayumi-san, the diva, visited the site to show her support. She got on a rubber boat, rallied against the cargo ships, played the guitar, and sang the songs. Coast guard officers and workers looked bewildered by the unfamiliar situation. Seven canoes and one rubber boat clung with the cargo ships and delayed its departure nearly for one hour.

694 truckloads of the earth and sand loaded to 3 cargo ships, which departed for the Oura Bay.

(Motobu Shiokawa Pier)

Five members of Motobu-Cho Shimagurumi Kaigi (Motobu chapter of the Island-Wide Conference) were the only protestors today. With no riot police in sight, they continued persistent protest, such as standing still in front of the dump trucks until almost 5 pm.

The workers moved 710 truckloads of the earth and sad onto five sand carriers, each with a grab bucket.

Number of dump trucks to date and percentage against the total

The estimation calculated on the basis of the number of ruckloads serves only as a reference.

Number of dump trucks which made delivery from December 2018 to the end of December 2020 302,705(3.746%)

	13（Sat)	15（Mon）	16（Tue）	17（Wed）	18(Thu)	19（Fri）
Awa	822(4)	278(1)	949(4)	687(3)	849(3)	694(3)
Shiokawa	0	689(5)	710(5)	706(5)	713(5)	710(5)