Japanese kickback scandal widens for PM Kishida

A graft scandal rocking Japan’s ruling party widened on Tuesday with a faction within the LDP headed until recently by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reportedly now also implicated.

Prosecutors are already investigating claims that reportedly around 500 million yen ($3.4 million) in kickbacks went to Liberal Democratic Party officials over the past five years.

The money allegedly was paid to party members who exceeded their ticket sales quotas for party fundraising events and was not properly declared to the tax authorities.

Until now the allegations have been confined to the largest of at least five factions within the LDP that was once led by assassinated former prime minister Shinzo Abe.

But fresh media reports on Tuesday said the faction headed by Kishida — until he quit it last week — may have also under-reported its income, although the amount was unclear.

Kishida, whose poll ratings are the lowest for any premier since the LDP returned to power in 2012, was already reported to be preparing to sack four ministers this week over the snowballing allegations.

They include the premier’s right-hand man Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, who reportedly accepted more than 10 million yen ($68,000) in kickbacks and who declined to comment on Tuesday.

“I have been telling the faction’s administrative office to thoroughly study (the allegations) and explain to authorities and take appropriate steps if we find items that need to be amended,” Kishida told reporters Tuesday.

“As I said, I have issued an instruction to investigate it and to take appropriate steps if we find areas that need to be amended. Upon seeing those media reports, I once again issued the instruction to be followed thoroughly,” he said.

Kishida took office two years ago but his poll ratings have been falling even after reshuffling his cabinet in September and a stimulus package worth 17 trillion yen ($117 billion) announced in November for the world’s third-largest economy.

The opposition bloc was expected to file a no-confidence motion against the Kishida cabinet on Wednesday, although it was unlikely to pass due to lack of support.

Matsuno also faced a no-confidence motion on Tuesday but it failed to be adopted in the lower house.