At least 700 gold badges worn by prefectural assembly members have not been returned in three prefectures — Saga, Kumamoto and Miyazaki — out of the four in Kyushu that have adopted a loan system, highlighting decades of sloppy management.
Under the loan system, each elected member receives a new badge for every election and is supposed to return it in the event of losing an election or retiring from politics. Kagoshima Prefecture also has a loan system, but it does not demand the return of the badges.
On the other hand, Fukuoka, Nagasaki and Oita prefectures give out a badge in every election for each elected member to keep. With the price of gold rising, some have questioned the necessity of such badges.