Political Ethics Committee Is Set

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reportedly made up his mind to set a Special Committee on Political Ethics in the Diet. Reluctantly accepting requests of the opposition parties, Kishida decided that the leaders who had received political funds from faction or party needed to explain about the money. However, having the committee does not necessarily mean disclosing everything about the slush fund scandal, which is shaking Kishida administration. 

Special Committee on Political Ethics was firstly established in both Houses in 1985, when LDP had the Lockheed Scandal in which former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka involved. The committee discusses whether Diet members violate laws or recognize their political or ethical responsibility, and makes appropriate recommendation. The committee is held when a member of each House hopes to testify or a majority of committee members approve.

 

Testimony in political ethics committee is different from summoning witness. Summons to witness is exercised based on Diet Testimony Law, ordinarily held in the Committee on Budget. If the witness invited to the Diet lied in the testimony, it will be a crime of perjury. However, testimony in Committee on Political Ethics is a venue for lawmakers to voluntarily explain about ethical doubts on them. There is no penalty on perjury.

 

In the ongoing discussion at the Committee on Budget in House of Representatives, the opposition parties demanded Kishida to accept their request of having the political ethics committee to ask questions to LDP leaders who have been involved in the slush fund scandal. Although Kishida have been saying that it would be decided through the negotiation between parties in the Diet, news reports revealed that Kishida ordered LDP board members to make a deal with the opposition parties.

 

While the leaders to testify in the committee are not determined yet, it is expected that “five guys” in Abe faction – Hagiuda, Matsuno, Nishimura, Seko and Takagi – should be the target. The head of Nikai faction, Toshihiro Nikai, is another one. It was reported that Nikai received ¥4.8 billion from LDP when he was Secretary General and Nikai’s political organization had spent ¥34.7 million to buy books for three years. The opposition parties are skeptical that the spendings are not reasonable.

 

Although Kishida ordered internal investigation to LDP lawmakers about the scandal, he has been rejecting revealing what the political funds, distributed from factions to lawmakers and being failed to report, were used for. As long as major skepticism remains, Kishida cannot bring the scandal to an end.

 

It is notable that the lawmakers can reject attending the political ethics committee, even the committee decided to invite them. If someone dismisses the request of the committee to testify, Kishida will display his lack of leadership to control the lawmakers.

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