On the night of the 25th, the political group of Liberal Democratic Party member of the House of Representatives Taku Otsuka (Saitama 9th Ward, Abe faction) held a party to support Taku Otsuka at a hotel in Ichigaya, Tokyo. The Abe faction (Seiwa Policy Research Group) has just had its house searched by the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office Special Investigation Department on the 19th due to a slush fund scandal involving party income. The Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications, Takeaki Matsumoto, who is in charge of the political funding system, also attended the meeting and gave a speech. Some attendees were confused, saying, “The world won’t forgive me.” Even experts criticize the move, saying, “They don’t understand the anger of the people.” (Tsuyoshi Sugitani, Fumina Ebisuno)
A large hotel venue where the “Otsuka Taku-kun Encouragement Party” was held. Representative Otsuka greets visitors at the entrance of the venue on the 25th in Ichigaya, Tokyo (partial image processing)
◆200 people attend, pay 20,000 yen, no food or drink
Mr. Taku Otsuka
Just before 5 p.m., a stream of business and organization officials, mostly dressed in suits, visited the venue, and Congressman Otsuka bowed his head to greet them at the back of the entrance.
The reception was divided into members of the Diet, business organizations, local guests, and constituency members, and several office staff members accepted payments of 20,000 yen per ticket and handed them receipts, and those who appeared to have made the payment in advance were sent to the venue. I also showed them around.
Approximately 200 people attended. On this day, there were no tables, chairs were spaced out, and there was no food or drink. A bag containing a souvenir box of sables and a plastic bottle of tea was prepared.
◆Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Takeaki Matsumoto, who is in charge of the matter, also attended “because he is a friend”
Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Takeaki Matsumoto
Reporters were not allowed to enter the venue. According to attendees, Rep. Otsuka said in his speech regarding the slush fund scandal, “I’m sorry for causing such a fuss.I think we need to address the issue of political ethics.” Another attendee said, “The lawmaker said, “I had nothing to do with it, so I held the meeting.”
Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Matsumoto, who replaced Abe’s pro-Abe lawmaker Junji Suzuki, who resigned as minister after receiving a 600,000 yen kickback from his faction, also attended. When he came out of the venue after giving his speech, he said, “I have nothing to say,” other than saying, “I’m a friend of mine (who attended).”
The meeting ended after 6 o’clock. Representative Otsuka saw off the attendees inside the venue. I asked the staff to interview the legislators, but they refused, and even when I called out the names of the legislators who were inside the venue, there was no word, and the entrances and exits were closed. They waited outside the venue, but the lawmaker ultimately left the hotel without showing up.
◆”I’m doing other things too. Last week, I went three times a day.”
A businessman who attended said, “Compared to the Liberal Democratic Party politician’s party in November, the number of people this time was drastically reduced.It was rare that there was only one other Diet member who greeted the party. The world won’t tolerate that.” A man from a large company said, “Other politicians also party.Last week, I went to parties three times a day.If you follow the law, there’s nothing wrong with it.”
According to the 2022 Political Funds Income and Expenditure Report, Congressman Otsuka’s fund management organization “World System Research Institute” held “Taku Otsuka Encouragement Meetings” in February and December of the same year, earning a total of 25.89 million yen. Ta. Representative Otsuka has been elected five times. He serves as the vice-chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party’s campaign committee.
On the 26th, this newspaper requested interviews in writing and verbally from the offices of Rep. Otsuka and Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Matsumoto in the Diet Building, but received no response by the evening of the same day.
political funding partyOpened by politicians and political organizations to raise funds for their activities. The Political Funds Control Act allows the remainder after expenses are deducted from income to be used for political activities. If a payment exceeding 200,000 yen is received from the same individual or corporation for a single party, the name and address of the party making the payment will be included in the political funds balance report. If a single event generates more than 10 million yen in income, it is called a “specified party,” and the party must record the date and amount of income. In the case of the Liberal Democratic Party faction, there are cases where they collect more than 100 million yen at a time.
◆The Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications is in a position where he has to say no.
Story by journalist Hirotaka FutakiI feel that there is a lack of political sense in holding a party this long. The fact is that the party only sees the problem as limited to this extent. Prime Minister Kishida has said that he will carry out party reforms as soon as possible, but this has not penetrated the party. The Abe faction is out of control. It’s in a state of collapse. Even though the Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications is in a position where he has to say no, the fact that he attended shows a lack of sense of crisis. I think the people have no choice but to continue to be angry.
◆I’m angry that he doesn’t understand the gravity of his betrayal.
Story by Michiko Yoshinaga, a non-fiction writerDon’t you feel the anger towards the people’s politics? I thought they had refrained from partying, but they are still working hard to raise money. They do not understand the gravity of betraying the people’s trust. That makes me angry. I doubt the nerve to throw a party now. I feel even more disbelief. Is the Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications unable to consider the gravity of the situation? People with no imagination are in the cabinet, and they will also manage elections. He is insulting the people.
2023-12-26 21:00:00
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