New Issues of Politics and Money Emerge as Government Secret Funds Flow to Cabinet Office Staff Funded by Taxes

In the previous article titled, “Former Driver Reveals Government Secret Funds Used as Special Allowances for Cabinet Office Chauffeur Staff,” former driver Shokichi Ishikawa (pseudonym), who worked as a driver for ministers and vice ministers at the Cabinet Office, confessed that he had received cash funded by government secret funds (Cabinet Office Confidential Funds) as a “special allowance” from the Chief Cabinet Secretary he was responsible for driving.

As the LDP is rocked by the issue of slush funds from factional party ticket income, new allegations of “politics and money” have surfaced.

Read the first part of the article , “[Former Driver Confesses Determination] Secret Secretariat Funds Were Used as ‘Special Allowance’ for ‘Cabinet Office’ Transportation Staff! reads as follows.

“Only the Chief Cabinet Secretary’s drivers received the ‘special allowance’ every month. However, for someone as prominent as former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, it was a different story. He handed over 30,000 yen in cash every month as a tip. Of course, no receipt was needed. It’s possible that the funds came from the faction’s party funds or perhaps from correspondence expenses,” said Ishikawa.

Correspondence expenses refer to “document communication transportation and accommodation expenses.” Although it has now been renamed “research, publicity, and accommodation expenses,” it is currently provided tax-free at 1 million yen per month to all national legislators, with no obligation to disclose usage or provide receipts.

“Evening meetings often extend into the late night, so Chief Cabinet Secretary drivers have almost no private life. It was avoided by drivers with young children. But it is also true that it was lucrative. Including salary, overtime, and confidential funds, monthly income could approach 1 million yen,” said Ishikawa.