January 15, 2025
Japanese Communist Party Dietmember Yamashita Yoshiki questioned two LDP lawmakers: Ueno Michiko and Ejima Kiyoshi who had belonged to the former Abe faction, at a House of Councilors Political Ethics Committee meeting held on January 14 in regard to the LDP factions’ slush-fund scandal.
Ueno explained that her secretary had managed the slush funds and kept them in a desk drawer in her office. She testified that the money had been used to pay for things that she “didn’t want to pay for as much as possible” such as for presents and for entry to workshops where food and drink were provided, but claimed that “none had been used for private purposes.”
Yamashita noted that Ueno’s political funds report, which had been corrected after the revelation of the unregistered funds, additionally stated that she had purchased a total of 460,000 yen worth of gifts at a strawberry farm in her constituency in Tochigi Prefecture. He grilled her, saying, “You used the off-the-book funds for these things that you wanted to conceal,” and added, “The systematic method of falsifying political funds reports in order to create illegal funds for kickbacks had an effect of preventing your true income and expenditure from being made public.”
Ueno explained that she had once asked Seko Hiroshige, former LDP Upper House secretary-general (now an LDP member of the Lower House) about the creation of kickback money but he had replied he does not know.
Ejima argued that the responsibility for the slush-fund allegations lies not with Seko but with LDP faction executives of the Lower House.
However, when Yamashita pointed out that Seko is suspected of being deeply involved in the illegal moneymaking scam, Ejima admitted, “Seko was partly responsible because he was the LDP House of Councilors secretary-general at the time.”
Past related article:
> All LDP lawmakers in Political Ethics Committee interrogations claim they ‘Don't Know’ about kickback money [December 21, 2024]
Ueno explained that her secretary had managed the slush funds and kept them in a desk drawer in her office. She testified that the money had been used to pay for things that she “didn’t want to pay for as much as possible” such as for presents and for entry to workshops where food and drink were provided, but claimed that “none had been used for private purposes.”
Yamashita noted that Ueno’s political funds report, which had been corrected after the revelation of the unregistered funds, additionally stated that she had purchased a total of 460,000 yen worth of gifts at a strawberry farm in her constituency in Tochigi Prefecture. He grilled her, saying, “You used the off-the-book funds for these things that you wanted to conceal,” and added, “The systematic method of falsifying political funds reports in order to create illegal funds for kickbacks had an effect of preventing your true income and expenditure from being made public.”
Ueno explained that she had once asked Seko Hiroshige, former LDP Upper House secretary-general (now an LDP member of the Lower House) about the creation of kickback money but he had replied he does not know.
Ejima argued that the responsibility for the slush-fund allegations lies not with Seko but with LDP faction executives of the Lower House.
However, when Yamashita pointed out that Seko is suspected of being deeply involved in the illegal moneymaking scam, Ejima admitted, “Seko was partly responsible because he was the LDP House of Councilors secretary-general at the time.”
Past related article:
> All LDP lawmakers in Political Ethics Committee interrogations claim they ‘Don't Know’ about kickback money [December 21, 2024]
