Japan town gets lambasted online for building giant squid with Covid-19 relief funds


A giant squid statue built using coronavirus disease (Covid-19) subsidies is seen in Noto, Ishikawa prefecture, Japan in this still image obtained from a social media video. — Courtesy of YouTube@TheTonarinopoti/Social Media via Reuters

TOKYO: A Japanese costal town in the western part of the country has drawn ire on social media for using some of the coronavirus relief funds it was given by the government to build a statue of a giant squid in the hopes of boosting tourism.

The town of Noto in Ishikawa Prefecture was awarded 800mil yen (RM30.14mil) in grants from the central government as part of an aid programme aimed at boosting local economies amid the pandemic, according to domestic media.

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