Photo/Illutration Defense Minister Minoru Kihara at a news conference on July 5 (Nobuhiko Tajima)

Defense Minister Minoru Kihara has ordered a special investigation into the alleged use of slush funds by Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. to purchase goods for Maritime Self-Defense Force submarine crew members.

These slush funds were reportedly created via KHI asking subcontractors to cooperate in fabricated transactions and then pooling the payments to the subcontractors.

“It is only natural that we will carry out the executions of our budgets in a strict manner, and we must not allow anything to occur that could cause suspicion or distrust among the public," Kihara said at a news conference on July 5. "We will deal with the situation strictly based on the facts that have been uncovered.”

In response to revelations of the scandal, the MSDF set up a general accident investigation committee. However, Kihara stressed that the ministry “needs to further strengthen its system of investigation.”

“We will conduct a special defense inspection of the relationship between the personnel and the other party in the contract, as well as the appropriateness of the contract," he said. 

The special defense investigation will be conducted independently by the Inspector General’s Office of Legal Compliance, which is headed by a former prosecutor.

In addition to merchandise, KHI is believed to have used the slush funds to procure gift certificates for many members of the submarine's crew along with entertaining them with food and drinks.

The practice is believed to have been wide-ranging involving senior MSDF officers to ordinary crew members.

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