Flow of political funds must be clear

The Daily Yomiuri, Asia News Network, Tokyo

Political activities cost money, but the flow of political funds must be fully explained to eliminate public distrust.

After political fund reports for 2001 filed with the Public Management Ministry by political parties and political fund management organizations were made available Thursday, it was obvious that many issues regarding these funds need to be corrected.

One of these issues concerns donations from private companies and other organizations.

Donations to the political fund management organizations of individual lawmakers were banned in January 2000. As the result, these donations are now made to the local chapters of political parties instead.

Although the amount of donations collected by political parties and fund management organizations in 2001 decreased slightly compared to the previous year, the overall fund-raising structure remains intact.

In some cases, funds at local chapters were funneled to the political fund management organizations of individual lawmakers.

There are no restrictions on political donations to local party chapters. However, most lawmakers belonging to the Liberal Democratic Party serve as heads of local chapters, meaning that these chapters function as support organizations for the lawmakers.

In other words, the flow of funds continues despite the ban on political donations to individual lawmakers.

Four opposition parties submitted a bill during the last ordinary Diet session to revise the Political Funds Control Law to limit the number of local chapters that can receive political donations. A committee of academics set up by the LDP is also calling for a ceiling on donations from local chapters to political fund management organizations.

On the basis of these proposals, urgent measures should be taken to close the current system's loopholes. Reports filed with the ministry and those filed with prefectural governments should be released at the same time so that we can obtain a better grasp of the political donation picture. It is also indispensable to increase the transparency of political fund expenditures.

Receipts should be required to see where the money is really being spent. Donations from secretaries also should be reviewed.

Kiyomi Tsujimoto, a former House of Representatives member, was accused of receiving part of her state-funded secretary's salary and failing to report that as a political donation as required by law. Even if she had reported this as a donation, it would still present a problem considering the relationship between lawmakers and secretaries. Are secretaries making such donations at their own free will?

The public's distrust of politics originated with money- tainted scandals. Political parties and lawmakers should constantly review the political fund situation and fix what needs to be fixed.