Photo/Illutration Fumitake Fujita, co-leader of Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party), speaks to reporters at the Diet on Nov. 4. (Takeshi Iwashita)

Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) co-leader Fumitake Fujita has drawn fire from the Japanese Communist Party's official newspaper for posting a photo online of the business card of one of its reporters who was involved in coverage alleging Fujita misused public funds. 

Senior editors formally requested on Nov. 4 that Fujita delete the image that was part of a post on X (formerly Twitter) responding to the newspaper's report and apologize. 

“This act threatens the press’s role as a watchdog of power,” the editors said in their statement addressed to the head of Ishin, the junior coalition partner of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. 

They argued that even though the reporter's phone number and email address are partially hidden, sharing their business card could incite harassment against them and undermine journalistic activities. 

“Even if parts of the card were obscured, that doesn’t make it acceptable,” editor-in-chief Toyohiko Yamamoto told The Asahi Shimbun.

According to Akahata, the reporter has since received a flood of automated emails, and the newspaper’s editorial office has fielded calls from individuals demanding to speak with the journalist.

The controversy stems from an Oct. 29 report in Akahata’s Sunday edition, which alleged that approximately 20 million yen ($130,000) of mostly public funds were funneled to a company headed by Fujita’s aide over a seven-year period.

The payments were reportedly made for printing fliers and posters, with the company supposedly paying the aide an annual salary of 7.2 million yen.

The article characterized the arrangement as a potential case of channeling taxpayer money to affiliated entities.

In response, Fujita took to X on Oct. 30 to deny the allegations, calling the article prejudiced and asserting that all transactions were legitimate and conducted in consultation with legal experts.

His post included an image of the Akahata reporter’s business card that he was given during an interview for the story, triggering a wave of backlash from what appear to be Ishin supporters and critics of the JCP.

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