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Asahi Shimbun
2 days ago
- Politics
- Asahi Shimbun
Governor Saito faces criminal complaint over information leak
KOBE--A university professor has filed a criminal complaint against Hyogo Governor Motohiko Saito and two others over the leaking of private information about a whistleblower who later died in an apparent suicide. The complaint was submitted to the Kobe District Public Prosecutors Office on June 10 by Kobe Gakuin University professor Hiroshi Kamiwaki. It accuses Saito, former Vice Governor Yasutaka Katayama, and Chiaki Inomoto, former director of the prefecture's general affairs division, of violating confidentiality obligation stipulations in the Local Public Officer Law. The whistleblower, who headed the prefectural government's branch office in charge of the Nishi-Harima region, had prepared a document that accused Saito and his top officials of power harassment and corruption. The document was sent anonymously to media organizations in March last year. But the identity of the whistleblower was uncovered. And private information about him was leaked to prefectural assembly members. He was found dead in July. 'I believe this is an organized crime carried out on the orders from the governor and the former vice governor,' Kamiwaki said. 'I hope the criminal allegations will lead to the truth being revealed.' Saito told reporters on June 11 that he takes the criminal complaint seriously. 'I will cooperate with the investigation,' he said. But he again insisted he never gave instructions for the information leak. 'As the prefectural government, we have already concluded this issue after conducting the investigation and deciding on disciplinary measures against the former head of the general affairs division,' the governor said. The criminal complaint is based largely on a report released last month by a third-party investigative committee set up by the prefecture. The committee concluded that Inomoto had leaked the information to three prefectural assembly members, and that the act was 'highly likely to have been ordered by the governor or the former vice governor.' The criminal complaint alleges that Inomoto leaked secrets he learned in the course of his duties, and that Saito and Katayama either ordered or encouraged the move. Kamiwaki said in the complaint that the three people tried to 'deny the credibility of the accusations from the deceased official through the leak in an attempt to protect themselves.' (The article was written by Kai Nemoto and Itsuki Soeda.)
The Mainichi
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The Mainichi
Japan minister 'disqualified' for job over rice gift gaffe, but no legal breach: expert
TOKYO -- Consumers feeling the pain of rising rice prices in Japan are voicing anger at agriculture minister Taku Eto over recent remarks that included the comment, "My supporters give me plenty of rice, so I have enough to sell." One expert said that if Eto does not understand the pain of most people, it disqualifies him from his role as minister. Eto, who was speaking publicly in the southwestern Japan city of Saga on May 18, apologized and retracted the comment the next evening, saying he had "greatly exaggerated." Yet, the question has arisen as to whether politicians could face legal action if they receive rice from supporters. Eto made the comments during a lecture at the "Saga political and economic seminar," which followed the ruling coalition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)'s Saga Prefecture chapter convention. After mentioning that brown rice is "more nutritious than polished rice," he said, "I have never bought rice myself," and continued, "It's also a lot of work to receive rice. Sometimes there are even stones mixed in it." The next day, Eto explained that he had wanted to encourage people to "buy brown rice, polish it, and enjoy eating it," because reserve stocks are sometimes sold as brown rice. However, Eto also noted that his wife told him, "It's not as if we cover all our needs with what's given to us," and he did not deny receiving rice from supporters. The Political Funds Control Act requires political organizations to record and disclose the receipt and expenditure of political funds in their reports. The question is whether rice could constitute "political funds." Hiroshi Kamiwaki, a professor at Kobe Gakuin University and an expert on the Political Funds Control Act, stated that rice was most likely received privately, and he believes it would not constitute political funds. If a politician were to receive large quantities of rice from a specific individual or company, it could be viewed as a bribe depending on the content of their duties as agriculture minister or the timing of the gift. Still, Kamiwaki noted, "If rice was given by a rice dealer, it could raise suspicion, but I think it would be regarded as (an issue of) whether it's a matter of political ethics." Kamiwaki also criticized Eto's words and actions as careless in light of "ministerial norms" which forbid acts that invite the people's distrust through close business ties: "There's no penalty, but this involves political responsibility, and he should not have received rice from supporters." Touching upon the issue of rising consumer prices of late, Kamiwaki concluded, "Eto's statement is honest in a sense, but he does not understand the lives of the common people. If he does not understand the pain of the majority of the people, it disqualifies him as a minister."
