Who owns Fujitsu? Internet calls for Japanese company to be held accountable for Post Office scandal after ITV drama release

The latest ITV series Mr Bates vs The Post Office features the events of the Post Office scandal that happened between 1999 and 2015. Following its premiere on January 1, 2024, the show received positive feedback from critics. Meanwhile, viewers expressed their frustration with everything that happened during the scandal.

The scandal emerged from the installation of a software called 'Horizon' for Post Office Limited in 1999 which was supposed to be useful for various activities, including transactions. However, it was followed by complaints of cash shortfalls, leading to convictions of around 700 sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses, as per BBC.

While a lot of people have seen the series, X (formerly Twitter) was flooded with several reactions where they called for a ban on the Japanese company Fujitsu.

The calls for a ban come after Post Office Limited extended a contract of £16.5 million with the company in April last year when it could not complete the cloud migration process. A spokesperson for the Post Office also shared a statement at the time, which read:

"We are continuing to make improvements to Horizon and our current systems, as well as ensuring safeguards and stability for the significant planned changes ahead. We have therefore made contract changes with Fujitsu which will apply to 31st March 2024."

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According to Craft, Takahito Tokita is the CEO of Fujitsu and a group of 49 other executives are looking over the operations of the company. The company provides IT services and has a separate department that focuses on IT consulting, implementation, and management services, as per Yahoo.

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Netizens demand ban on Fujitsu for being linked to the Post Office scandal

The British Post Office scandal that started in 1999 led to the conviction of around 700 branch managers, as per BBC. A few sub-postmasters were also sent to prison and others suffered from financial issues. The convictions were a result of a software technology called Horizon which was created by Fujitsu.

As mentioned earlier, the Post Office scandal is the main theme of the new show Mr Bates vs The Post Office, and while Fujitsu was found to be involved in the scandal, netizens began demanding a ban on the company through X:

The causes behind the scandal remain under investigation but charges of "cover up" were once imposed against the Post Office over the years. LBC reported that the software Horizon attempted to introduce a process for the branch managers in 1999 where they could have control over the accounts.

However, the new technology brought a major issue as multiple branches complained of having insufficient cash. When the problem emerged, it resulted in the firing of various postmasters, but no criminal investigation was launched against the Post Office.

One of the victims was also Alan Bates, who started working as an activist after the Post Office Scandal. Meanwhile, around 93 victims were provided with compensation after the charges against them were altered, as per LBC.

In January 2023, Sir Wyn Williams, who serves as the chairman of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, spoke up against the delay in compensations. Williams claimed in a report that around 100 people were not paid the compensation despite applying for it a long time ago.

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Fujitsu has been involved in other controversies in the past

While Fujitsu's link to the British Post Office scandal has landed them in controversy, the company has also been involved with other issues in the past. This includes glitches that happened at the ATMs of the Mizuho Bank in 2002.

According to BBC, Toyota Stock Exchange suffered a loss worth $300 million in 2005 which reportedly happened because of Fujitsu's software installed in their system. This resulted in a court case where no charges were filed against Fujitsu.