Five factions within Japan’s ruling party, the Liberal Democratic Party, are being investigated by prosecutors over slush fund-related issues. More than 10 people were caught in the largest faction, the Abe faction (Seiwa Policy Research Association).
According to the Yomiuri Shimbun on the 4th, the Tokyo District Prosecutors’ Office’s Special Investigation Department is conducting an investigation into alleged violations of the Political Fund Regulation Act based on a complaint by Kobe University professor Hiroshi Kamiwaki.
Prosecutors believe that the caught lawmakers systematically raised slush funds by diverting the remaining amount to personal income sources after meeting a certain amount of money raised at ‘political fund parties.’
Among the factions reported to the prosecution for understating the amount raised, the Abe faction is the largest, with about 19 million yen (about 168 million won). Other factions were found to be worth about 2 to 9.5 million yen (about 18 to 84 million won).
According to an official, the Abe faction generally manages the proceeds of ‘party tickets’ sold to companies and organizations through affiliated lawmakers in a separate dedicated account. Each member of the National Assembly receives confirmation from the party that he or she has achieved the political fund raising quota imposed on him/her, and suspicions have been raised that the so-called back pockets were filled with the remaining funds raised. The quota increased for multiple-term lawmakers.
The total income of the party as recorded in the Liberal Democratic Party’s ‘Political Fund Balance Report’ from 2018 to 2022 was about 660 million yen (about 5.8 billion won). Among these, the amount siphoned off as a slush fund was not recorded in either the faction’s income/expenditure or the lawmaker’s income/expenditure details.
It is estimated that at least 10 lawmakers from the Abe faction have raised slush funds over the past five years. The size is more than 100 million yen (approximately 880 million won), and one member of the National Assembly is said to have used more than 10 million yen (approximately 89 million won).
Abe faction leader Ryu Shionoya admitted on the 1st that “there was such talk” about slush funds, but suddenly changed his position five hours later, saying, “I will withdraw it because I have not confirmed the facts.”
Meanwhile, the fifth faction within the party, the Nikai faction (Shisui Kai), is also accused of collecting a total of over 100 million yen in slush funds over the past five years in the same manner as the Abe faction. However, unlike the Abe faction, the amounts were recorded in the faction’s expenditures and lawmakers’ income details. There is no legal problem if the fund flow is recorded in the balance of payments report.
An official from the Liberal Democratic Party told ANN News, “It will depend on the future investigation what will happen to the person stepping into the untouchable world.” All five factions of the Liberal Democratic Party (Abe, Aso, Motegi, Kishi, and Nikai) are targets of suspicion, but the prosecution’s attention is currently focused on the Abe faction, which has the largest slush fund.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s Abe faction of cabinet members includes Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ichiro Miyashita, and Suzuki. There are four people, including Minister of General Affairs Junji. It is the most used faction along with the Aso faction.
Even within the Liberal Democratic Party, the role of the Abe faction is crucial. This is because the Abe faction plays a key role in the party, including Tsuyoshi Takagi, chairman of the National Policy Committee of the Liberal Democratic Party, and Koichi Hagiuda, chairman of the Jeongjo Committee.
The Mainichi Shimbun predicted in a column, “The development of the incident is unpredictable, but if the investigation extends to the Abe faction, the regime will be shaken.”
Source: Donga
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