April 16, 2011
Board members of Tokyo Electric Power Corporation (TEPCO) have donated 17 million yen to the Liberal Democratic Party’s political fund management organization in the past three years, Akahata reported on April 14.
Amid the nuclear crisis at the TEPCO’s Fukushima No.1 Nuclear Power Plant, the shady relations between TEPCO and the Liberal Democratic Party, a promoter of nuclear power generation, is being called into question.
According to political fund reports submitted by the LDP’s political fund managing body, the People’s Political Association, in 2007, 42 TEPCO executives donated 5.43 million yen in total to the LDP. In 2008, 50 board members made a total donation of 5.91 million yen and in 2009, 47 members donated 5.69 million yen to the LDP.
The amount donated by each TEPCO executive member depended on their position. For example, in 2009, Chairman Katumata Tsunehisa and President Shimizu Masataka donated 300,000 yen each. Each of six Executive Vice Presidents, including Shirakawa Susumu, a former Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry official, paid 240,000 yen and eight out of nine Managing Directors 120,000 yen each.
This reveals that political donations from TEPCO executives were actually corporate donations to the LDP, although TEPCO claims that individual executives decide on their own whether to donate to the LDP.
Amid the nuclear crisis at the TEPCO’s Fukushima No.1 Nuclear Power Plant, the shady relations between TEPCO and the Liberal Democratic Party, a promoter of nuclear power generation, is being called into question.
According to political fund reports submitted by the LDP’s political fund managing body, the People’s Political Association, in 2007, 42 TEPCO executives donated 5.43 million yen in total to the LDP. In 2008, 50 board members made a total donation of 5.91 million yen and in 2009, 47 members donated 5.69 million yen to the LDP.
The amount donated by each TEPCO executive member depended on their position. For example, in 2009, Chairman Katumata Tsunehisa and President Shimizu Masataka donated 300,000 yen each. Each of six Executive Vice Presidents, including Shirakawa Susumu, a former Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry official, paid 240,000 yen and eight out of nine Managing Directors 120,000 yen each.
This reveals that political donations from TEPCO executives were actually corporate donations to the LDP, although TEPCO claims that individual executives decide on their own whether to donate to the LDP.
