The former president of Kitakami Design Consultants Co., Ltd. was involved in a misconduct related to a public tender for the 'General National Route 40 Bifuka Town Bifuka Road Repair Design Work' conducted by the Asahikawa Development and Construction Department of the Hokkaido Development Bureau on July 16, 2020. He requested the then-director of the Shibetsu Road Office to exclude a specific contractor from the designated bidding process, received guidance to exclude that contractor, and used fraudulent means to impair fairness in the public bid, violating the Public Contract Act. He was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months imprisonment (probation for 3 years) by the Asahikawa District Court on October 13, 2021, and the sentence was finalized. Consequently, the company’s registration as a construction consultant was suspended for one year, from December 27, 2021, to December 26, 2022. Contact: Hokkaido Development Bureau, Construction Industry Division, 011-709-2311.