Japan Press Weekly

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2013 December 4 - 10 [TOKYO]

Civic ombudsman group accuses Tokyo governor of receiving illegal money

A political funds ombudsman group on December 8 brought to the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor’s Office an accusation against Tokyo Governor Inose Naoki of illegally receiving 50 million yen in cash from the medical corporation group Tokushukai.

Kobe Gakuin University Professor Kamiwaki Hiroshi, who co-heads the ombudsperson group along with 30 scholars and citizens took part in the action.

The letter of accusation points out that the money Inose accepted in November last year from ex-President of Tokushukai, Tokuda Torao, is not a personal loan as Inose claims, but an illegal political donation.

The document states the Tokyo governor made a false statement in his campaign fund report in violation of the Public Office Election Law, and accepted a political donation from a private individual exceeding the upper limit of 1.5 million yen set by the Political Funds Control Law.

After the suspicion, Inose’s explanation changed again and again, clearly in attempts to avoid responsibility, the accusation statement points out. It calls on the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor’s Office to conduct thorough investigations to get the whole picture behind the scandal.