A massive vote-buying scandal stemming from the 2019 Upper House election resulted in guilty verdicts for two now former lawmakers from Hiroshima Prefecture, yet the individuals who accepted money from the couple, mostly local assembly members, went unpunished. They did not face criminal charges, nor did many of them accept political or moral responsibility for their actions. This miscarriage of justice is unacceptable and does little to restore public faith in politics.

A prosecution inquest panel has taken exception to the prosecutors’ decision not to indict 100 local politicians, supporters and campaign staff who received cash from Katsuyuki Kawai when he was the justice minister and his wife, Anri.

The husband was handed a prison sentence after being found guilty of distributing 28.71 million yen ($248,000) to buy votes to ensure his wife’s victory in the election. She was convicted of conspiring with her husband and received a suspended prison sentence that forced her to relinquish the Upper House seat she won in the election.

The citizen panel concluded that 35 of the 100 individuals in Hiroshima Prefecture should be indicted. The panel also took issue with the decision not to indict 46 others, calling it inappropriate. As a result, prosecutors have been forced to mount a fresh investigation.

The verdict delivered by a group of randomly selected citizens represents a formal objection to the prosecutors’ decision to let all these people off the hook. It also serves as a stern rebuke to those in public office, such as local government chiefs and assembly members, who acted as if they had done nothing wrong.

If this matter is consigned to oblivion, public confidence in the fairness of elections, a foundation of democracy, will be seriously undermined. We should not underestimate the seriousness of this case.

The inquest panel acknowledged that the weight of responsibility is different when measured against the power couple, who bought votes, and those who received the money. But the prosecutors’ decision to allow the bribe takers go unpunished, it argued, could obscure the fact that receiving bribes constitutes a serious violation of the law.

In reaching its decision, the panel regarded the responsibility of those who are in public office as especially grave. It considered such things as whether they resigned after the scandal came to light, how much money they received and whether they returned or donated the cash to a worthy cause.

Many people would support the panel’s argument. The panel’s verdict puts the onus on the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office to reopen its investigation to determine the criminal liability of the people in question. It is worth noting the panel asserted that those in public office must be held accountable to the highest standards.

Around 40 local politicians received cash from the couple. Only 10 local government chiefs and assembly members resigned after the scandal surfaced before the end of their terms. Many of the others went so far as to try to cast themselves as “victims” by claiming they were forced to accept the money.

Instead of taking action to restore political integrity, the local assemblies have shown disturbing signs of tolerance in this case.

Last year, the Hiroshima prefectural assembly, 13 members of which received cash gifts, held a meeting of the political ethics committee, composed of representatives from various political parties. But the committee did nothing but hear explanations from those involved and issue a written warning to them. The Hiroshima municipal assembly did no better. It simply sought an explanation from the 13 members and voted down a resolution to urge some of them to resign.

These local assemblies used the prosecutors’ decision to drop the case as a pretext for taking a lenient stance in the matter. The inquest panel’s decision calls for a serious response to the fundamental questions it raised.

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party, to which the couple belonged, is also facing a serious test of its political integrity. The party should clarify how the 150 million yen its headquarters supplied to the Kawai camp as campaign funds was actually used, by providing receipts and other records. It should also clarify the political responsibility of its members who received money from the campaign.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Feb. 1