Former Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly Speaker Gen Sho Yoshimatsu has accused the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) prefectural assembly group of demanding 20 million yen [1].
These allegations suggest a pattern of systemic corruption within the regional LDP leadership, involving both the extortion of party members and the potential misuse of taxpayer money for luxury travel.
Yoshimatsu, who remains an active assembly member, described the financial demands as a form of "katsuage" or protection money [1]. He said the demands were designed to exploit personal vulnerabilities to secure funds [1].
Beyond the extortion claims, Yoshimatsu alleged that public funds were used to finance an excessive number of overseas study tours. He said that assembly members traveled to Hawaii 25 times over a three-year period between 2021 and 2023 [1].
According to Yoshimatsu, these trips included stays at luxury hotels with nightly rates ranging from 110,000 yen [2] to 130,000 yen [1]. Other reports indicate the total cost per person for these overseas excursions reached 3 million yen [2].
Yoshimatsu brought these allegations forward around April 2024 [1]. The claims link the extorted funds to the financing of these high-cost trips, suggesting a cycle of illicit fundraising and public expenditure waste.
In response to the controversy, the LDP prefectural assembly speaker said that the plan to continue overseas study tours remains unchanged [2].
“"It was a demand for 'katsuage' or 'protection money' that took advantage of people's weaknesses."”
This dispute highlights a significant internal rift within the Fukuoka LDP and raises questions about the oversight of 'study tours,' which are often criticized in Japan as thinly veiled vacations funded by taxpayers. If the allegations of extortion and luxury spending are verified, it could lead to criminal charges for embezzlement or coercion and trigger a broader audit of prefectural travel expenses.
