When the Democratic Party of Japan was in the opposition, party member Mr. Akira Nagatsuma was known for research into the problem of hard-to- identify pension-premium payment records and his sharp questions on the matter in the Diet. Now as health, labor and welfare minister, he finds himself struggling to solve the problem.
In 2007 it was discovered that there were 50.95 million cases in which a person's pension premium payment history could not be confirmed. The Social Insurance Agency said that as of September, 15.81 million of those cases remained unsolved. Now it appears the problems involve 850 million pension-related records.
The DPJ claimed in its election manifesto that if it gained power it would strive to resolve the problems within two years. But there is a pessimistic view within Mr. Nagatsuma's ministry that even a decade would not be enough time to solve the problems. The government needs to do its utmost to resolve these problems while people eligible to receive pensions are still alive.