September 26, 2016
Prime Minister Abe Shinzo and 10 other Cabinet members from the governing Liberal Democratic Party accumulated most of the political party subsidies they received in 2015, Akahata reported on September 26.
Akahata examined the recently published annual report on the use of government subsidies for political parties. According to the results of the examination, each of all the 19 Cabinet ministers from the LDP, including PM Abe, received 11 million yen in party subsidies in 2015 through the LDP headquarters, which amounts to 209 million yen in total.
Of them, 11 Cabinet members, including PM Abe and Defense Minister Inada Tomomi, “saved” remains of the public money under the name of “funds”. The amount the 11 ministers accumulated from the subsidies totals 72.17 million yen, nearly 60% of the grants they received in 2015.
As of the end of 2015, Reconstruction Minister Imamura Masahiro holds the largest saved “fund” amounting to 21.24 million yen, followed by PM Abe’s 15.78 million yen.
Political parties are supposed to return unused party subsidies to the national treasury in principle. However, almost all political parties are “pocketing” the remains of the grants, using a loophole in the Political Party Subsidies Act that allows carrying over the remnants to the next year as “funds”.
The Japanese Communist Party has consistently refused to accept party subsidies, arguing that the political party grant system goes against the Japanese Constitution which guarantees the freedom of thought and belief.
Past related article:
> High-ranking officials in Abe government ‘pocket’ over 100 million yen in public subsidies [August 23, 2016]
Akahata examined the recently published annual report on the use of government subsidies for political parties. According to the results of the examination, each of all the 19 Cabinet ministers from the LDP, including PM Abe, received 11 million yen in party subsidies in 2015 through the LDP headquarters, which amounts to 209 million yen in total.
Of them, 11 Cabinet members, including PM Abe and Defense Minister Inada Tomomi, “saved” remains of the public money under the name of “funds”. The amount the 11 ministers accumulated from the subsidies totals 72.17 million yen, nearly 60% of the grants they received in 2015.
As of the end of 2015, Reconstruction Minister Imamura Masahiro holds the largest saved “fund” amounting to 21.24 million yen, followed by PM Abe’s 15.78 million yen.
Political parties are supposed to return unused party subsidies to the national treasury in principle. However, almost all political parties are “pocketing” the remains of the grants, using a loophole in the Political Party Subsidies Act that allows carrying over the remnants to the next year as “funds”.
The Japanese Communist Party has consistently refused to accept party subsidies, arguing that the political party grant system goes against the Japanese Constitution which guarantees the freedom of thought and belief.
Past related article:
> High-ranking officials in Abe government ‘pocket’ over 100 million yen in public subsidies [August 23, 2016]
