Exiting Tokyo Gov. Yoichi Masuzoe made nine overseas business trips during his term at a cost of ¥247.19 million, a sum that included expenses for accompanying officials, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has revealed.
Details of Masuzoe’s international spending spree over the 28 months since he was elected in February 2014 came as he prepared to leave office Tuesday following weeks of criticism over his inappropriate use of political funds and lavish overseas business trips.
He was ultimately forced to fall on his sword after both the ruling coalition and the opposition parties in the Tokyo Municipal Assembly both said they would support a no-confidence motion against him.
Of the nine official trips, the metropolitan government confirmed Monday that a London and Berlin tour in autumn 2014 was the most expensive at ¥69.76 million, compared with an average of ¥27.47 million for the trips.
Masuzoe took first-class flights on three of the trips — jaunts to London and Berlin, Paris and London in autumn 2015, and New York and Washington this past April — while using business class for the other six trips because no first-class seats were available.
At hotels, he mostly stayed in suites with conference rooms.
Asked why, the disgraced governor said he was usually asked by the host side to use a room of similar class. But such requests were actually made only for his visits to Tomsk, Russia, in September 2014, and Seoul in October 2015, the government said.
The business trip expenses for Masuzoe alone totaled ¥15.75 million. The most officials he ever took with him was 19, both on the 2014 London-Berlin tour and the 2015 Paris-London trip.
By comparison, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s overseas expenses have come to ¥8.774 billion since the launch of his second administration in December 2012, with an average cost of ¥219 million.
Masuzoe said nothing to reporters on Monday as he made his final appearance at the metropolitan government’s main office. He also refused to speak with the media after submitting his resignation last Wednesday over the funding scandal, canceling his regular press briefing and other public events.
Masuzoe’s departure casts doubt on whether he will deliver on a promise to disclose further details of his use of political funds, which included purchases of artworks and luxury hotel stays during official trips.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has already suspended a review of internal rules related to expenses for overseas business trips and the use of official cars.
His term spanned two years and four months, the second-shortest of any of the eight Tokyo governors since World War II. The previous governor, Naoki Inose, also stepped down over a funds scandal.
Until the July 31 gubernatorial election, the four deputy governors will cover the governor’s job.
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