Photo/Illutration Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba raises his hand to respond to questions from the opposition parties at the Upper House Budget Committee meeting on March 19. (Takeshi Iwashita)

It appears to have been customary for successive Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) governments to distribute expensive gift certificates as "souvenirs" during dinner gatherings hosted by the prime minister with other party members.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba should not evade addressing this issue by claiming, "I am not in a position to comment."

Instead, he should take responsibility for clarifying the facts surrounding it. If this is indeed a dubious “tradition" within the LDP, Ishiba should take the lead in using this opportunity to break with it.

In 2022, under former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's administration, 100,000 yen ($670) worth of gift certificates were reportedly distributed to attendees of a meeting between Kishida and parliamentary secretaries at the Prime Minister's Official Residence.

This suggests that Ishiba may have merely followed this established practice when his office distributed the same amount of gift certificates to 15 rookie LDP members of the Lower House ahead of a dinner at the Prime Minister's Official Residence on March 3.

Ishiba has repeatedly stated that the distribution of gift certificates was intended as a "reward" for the election campaign efforts of the recipients, with no intention for them to be used for political activities.

He maintains that there is no need to report the gift certificates as income in the mandatory political funding disclosures.

However, 100,000 yen per person exceeds what the public would typically consider a customary gesture.

Since gift certificates can be exchanged for cash and potentially used for political purposes, this practice could undermine the intent of the Political Funds Control Law, which aims to ensure transparency in political funding and subject it to public scrutiny.

Ishiba claims that both the dinner expenses and the gift certificates were covered by his personal funds. The dinner, attended by 19 individuals—including the prime minister, the chief Cabinet secretary, the deputy chief Cabinet secretaries, and 15 first-term lawmakers—cost 15,000 yen per person.

When factoring in the gift certificates, the total expenditure amounts to nearly 1.8 million yen.

It is questionable whether Ishiba truly covered such a significant expense out of his own pocket for a single gathering. While Ishiba firmly denies the allegation, suspicions linger that the Cabinet Office's discretionary reward fund—often referred to as "secret funds"—may have been involved.

These funds can be used freely by the chief Cabinet secretary, without requiring receipts or transparent reporting on their allocation.

The offices of successive LDP prime ministers, including Kishida, who is Ishiba’s predecessor, have told the media that they "acted in accordance with the law and regulations." However, they have not provided a clear answer regarding the distribution of gift certificates.

The issue at hand extends beyond the prime minister's personal conduct to the broader political culture of the ruling party.

If the LDP genuinely seeks to rebuild the trust it lost after the slush fund scandal, it must undertake a comprehensive review to eliminate any money-related practice or tradition that conflicts with the public's sense of fairness.

At the recent party convention, the LDP unveiled a political campaign platform centered on "building a political infrastructure suited to the times," which included plans to draft a political reform outline for the Reiwa Era (2019 to present). However, the party’s commitment to reform remains tepid.

With only 10 days remaining until the end of the month—the deadline for reaching a decision on the proposal to restrict political donations from businesses and other organizations—the LDP stands as the sole party yet to introduce any new regulatory measures to address this channel of political funding.

Allowing the status quo to persist simply due to time constraints is unacceptable. This moment presents a crucial opportunity for Ishiba, as the party leader, to exhibit decisive leadership and break through the current impasse.

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 21

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