TOKYO: A Liberal Democratic Party faction led by LDP Secretary-General MOTEGI Toshimitsu is facing new slush fund allegations after no one from the faction was criminally charged in the Japanese ruling party’s money scandal.

At a House of Councillors committee meeting on Monday, Renho of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan said that a total of around 320 million yen had been transferred from a policy study group linked to Motegi to a support group for him over 10 years.

According to political funds reports for 2022, the study group was registered as a “lawmaker-related political group,” while the support group was not, falling under the category of “other political organizations.”

Lawmaker-related political groups are required to include ordinary and political activity expenses exceeding 10,000 yen in their political funds reports and attach copies of receipts. Meanwhile, other political organizations are required to report only political activity expenses of 50,000 yen or more.

The 2022 funds reports showed that the Motegi study group donated a total of 32.5 million yen to the Motegi support group. The only expenses disclosed in detail by the support group were the costs of meetings at Japanese restaurants, which totaled 168,000 yen.

At the Upper House committee meeting, Renho pointed out that a secretary for Motegi was listed as a clerical official of both the study and support groups. The two groups are “operated in an integrated manner to hide the diversion of funds,” she argued. “It’s not illegal, but it exploits a loophole in the law.”

As economic revitalization minister SHINDO Yoshitaka, a member of the Motegi faction, apparently engages in a similar practice, Renho called it “the Motegi faction method.”

Denying the slush fund allegations, Motegi said, “We are making appropriate funds reports based on the political funds control law.”

However, a veteran LDP member said that “not many of us” engage in similar practices.

At a press conference on Wednesday, FUJITA Fumitake, secretary-general of opposition Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party), argued that the practice at the Motegi faction could damage public trust in politics. “People see them as doing deceptive things,” Fujita said.

JIJI Press