The question of politics and money remains very much alive in Japan. It was the subject of intensive debate at Thursday's special session of the Lower House Budget Committee. Central to the debate was the legality of corporate donations to political parties, a question that has taken on new meaning in light of two recent fundraising scandals.
One involves the Liberal Democratic Party's chapter in Nagasaki Prefecture, which collected donations from local public works contractors ahead of a prefectural governorship election. Two officials running the branch at the time have been indicted for violation of the Public Offices Election Law, which bans donations designed to finance a specific election.
The other scandal concerns donations made by Kumagai Gumi, a major construction contractor, to an LDP fundraising group. The company contributed the funds even though it was operating at a huge deficit that prevented it from paying dividends. The Fukui District Court ruled the contributions illegal and ordered the firm's former president to pay damages.