Yokohama Mayor Cries at Council Hearing Over Bullying Case
Listen to the story
Yokohama is a big city in Japan. Its mayor is named Takeharu Yamanaka. A report said he was guilty of power harassment. This means he was bad to his workers because he had more power than them.
On August 13, the mayor said sorry. On August 14, he went to a city council meeting. A council is a group of people who help run the city. City members asked him hard questions. The mayor cried during the meeting.
The mayor said he wants to cut his own salary. A salary is the money a person gets for their job. This is a way to say sorry for his actions.
The biggest political group in the council is the Liberal Democratic Party, or LDP. LDP members in the council want the mayor to resign. To resign means to leave a job.
Some people also talked about a new election. An election is when people vote for a leader. The mayor may run in this new election.
Vocabulary8 words
- guilty
- did something wrong
- power harassment
- being cruel to someone with less power
- council
- a group that helps run a city
- members
- people in a group
- salary
- money you get for work
- Liberal Democratic Party
- name of a big political group in Japan
- resign
- to leave a job
- election
- when people vote for a leader
Quiz
Answer key
1. The mayor of Yokohama 2. He cried 3. True
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
Yokohama is a big city in Japan. Its mayor is named _____. A report said he was guilty of _____.
On August 13, the mayor said _____. On August 14, he went to a city _____ meeting. City members asked him hard questions. The mayor _____ during the meeting.
The mayor said he wants to cut his own _____.
The biggest political group in the council is the _____. LDP members want the mayor to _____.
Some people also talked about a new _____. The mayor may run in this new election.