The newly reorganized government ministries and agencies began operating Jan. 6. The administration of Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, however, seems to be oblivious to the purpose of the reform.
The purpose of the reorganization was not merely to reduce the number of government departments, but to reform Japan by ending government service based on centralized power, which had been the case since the Meiji era, and by creating a national system led by the private sector. The reorganization was not aimed at switching from bureaucratic control to political leadership in the government. For decades, bureaucrats and politicians have colluded to reap maximum gains together.
The KSD payoff scandal is a case in point. KSD, a mutual-aid organization, failed to raise enough private funds for its plan to establish a unique college of technologists, in itself a laudable concept. So KSD asked politicians and bureaucrats for help and obtained government aid totaling 8 billion yen to establish the college. The college's legitimacy as a private institution is in doubt after it received such generous aid. The fine ideal of university education has been corrupted by politicians as well as by the retired bureaucrats who have landed KSD-related jobs.