Still Mysterious Kickback System

The Political Ethics Committee of House of Representatives held hearings from four lawmakers who had taken leadership in Seiwa Policy Association, or Abe faction on Friday. On slush fund scandal of Liberal Democratic Party, they made unisonous answers that they had not been involved in the “kickback” of political fund to members of the faction. Although Prime Minister Fumio Kishida urged former members of Abe faction to take responsibility of explaining about the scandal, the hearing did not remove public distrust on politics.

It had been revealed by internal investigation in LDP that Abe faction started the kickback system, returning political fund raised by sales of ticket for fundraising party beyond the quota allotted to the members, over twenty years ago. Those four leaders stressed their innocence, saying that they did not know that the fund returned to the members had not been recorded on the political funds report.

 

When former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was president of the faction in 2022, Abe faction once decided to abolish the kickback system. However, it resumed after Abe was shot to death in July of the same year. Former Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Yasutoshi Nishimura, who was secretary general of Abe faction at the time, told in the committee that they decided because Abe argued that kind of obscure money might generate skepticism. “We did not discuss whether it was illegal or it should be recorded. I did not recognize the illegality of the money,” said Nishimura.

 

Soon after assassination of Abe, some members requested the faction to return the fund. No leader revealed the name of member who requested and who decided the resumption of kickback. The faction leaders discussed the request in August, but did not reach any conclusion, according to Nishimura. “It was decided that kickback would be continued as for 2022, in an ambiguous process,” told Ryu Shionoya, the chairperson of regular faction meetings after Abe died, in the committee. The last secretary general of Abe faction who succeeded Nishimura in 2022, Tsuyoshi Takagi, revealed in the committee that they decided not to continue the kickback in 2023 at the end of 2022.

 

The committee also did not reveal who started the kickback system. Although the opposition parties doubted the involvement of former Prime Minister, Yoshiro Mori, who had been the president of Seiwa-kai in 2000’s, the faction leaders insisted that they had not heard anything about Mori’s involvement. “You should ask someone else, because we, as interested people, might be suspected as collaborating in stories,” told Nishimura.

 

The biggest question is what the money was used for. Former Head of Constitutional Democratic Party, Yukio Edano, asked former Chief Cabinet Secretary affiliated with Abe faction, Hirokazu Matsuno, about ¥8 million of fund which was currently added to the political fund report in 2021. While Matsuno explained that the money was kept in his office in cash, Edano questioned why that money was not taxed.

 

If that donation was used for political purpose, it would not be taxed. However, if it were for private purpose, it must be taxed. Although Matsuno explained that it was used for meetings with lawmakers, he did not reveal the name of them. “It is not strange for anyone to suppose that it would have been used for having meals with your family,” said Edano. As long as this point is not clear, skepticisms on politics may not be removed.

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