Few would believe that the recent crackdown on the education ministry unlawfully arranging post-retirement employment for its officials has ended the corrupt practice of elite bureaucrats landing lucrative jobs at private-sector businesses and organizations that they once supervised. Officials at government ministries and agencies continue to use clever ways to secure post-retirement positions for themselves. A typical example is the police — which hold "reserved seats" for their retired ranks in organizations related to the pachinko industry.
The cozy ties between the police and the industry date back roughly 30 years, when the National Police Agency took the initiative of getting operators of pachinko parlors to introduce prepaid cards for their customers. This gave the police access to the vested interests in the industry, which at its peak had annual sales of more than ¥30 trillion.
A major issue confronting the industry now is how to cope with criticism linking pachinko and gambling addiction, in the wake of the enactment late last year of the law legalizing casinos as a key feature of integrated resorts. In April, the ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito launched a working team to compile draft legislation to deal with gambling addiction.