Tachibana’s Lies and “Old Media” Mistakes in Saito’s Re-election

The turmoil surrounding the Hyogo Prefectural Gubernatorial Election is still ongoing. New allegations have arisen against Governor Motohiko Saito, who made a comeback, leaving Hyogo in a chaotic state.

This election, often referred to as a SNS theater-type election, is undoubtedly the first where social media significantly influenced the outcome.

Saito utilized social media to secure his victory, but it was the intervention of Takashi Tachibana, the leader of the NHK Party, that had an even greater impact on the election. Tachibana’s support fire led to a rapid increase in Saito’s support base, allowing him to turn around his previous disadvantage and secure the win.

Saito denies any involvement in power harassment.

Tachibana, in both his political broadcasts and street speeches,

“Saito did not commit power harassment.”

“The former head of the prefectural office committed suicide out of fear that his own scandals would be exposed.”

He continued to spread these views through his YouTube channel and X (formerly Twitter).

As a result, many people began to interpret the situation as:

“There was no power harassment or solicitation.”

“What was reported on television is false.”

Some even proposed the conspiracy theory that Saito’s accusations were part of a plot by opposing forces who feared reform. As a result, more people began to support Saito.

However, is what Tachibana is saying the truth?

Did those who believed Tachibana’s statements forget that there had been reports of a different nature?

In a survey conducted by the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly Special Committee on the Document Issue, which targeted 9,700 prefectural employees, 6,725 people responded. Of these, 140 individuals answered that they personally witnessed (or experienced) the governor’s power harassment, and 800 people responded that they heard about it from someone who personally witnessed (or experienced) it.

 

Furthermore, when adding the 1,911 people who answered that they heard it through word of mouth, more than 40% of the respondents knew about Saito’s power harassment in some form.

Additionally, on August 30, non-anonymous testimonies were presented in the hundred-article committee.

The head of the East Harima Prefectural Office, who was reprimanded by Governor Saito for making a 20-meter walk, testified.

“I did not expect such a strong reprimand, and my mind went blank.”

“I feel that it was not necessary guidance based on social norms, but rather an unreasonable reprimand.”

He stated.

A clip cut from news footage.

Then, during the witness testimony at the hundred-article committee on August 30, Saito admitted to having:

“Reprimanded employees harshly, threw sticky notes, and slammed the desk.”

He acknowledged this and added:

“I thought it was necessary guidance, but if anyone felt uncomfortable, I sincerely apologize. Whether it constitutes power harassment or not is something to be determined not by me, but by the hundred-article committee and others.”

He stated, didn’t he? Are all these reports fake?

However, it is still being said that:

“Kenichi Okutani, the chairman of the hundred-article committee, mentioned that there was no power harassment.”

This video was broadcast in August.

This video is a cutout of a TV news clip broadcast in August. If you listen to what Okutani says all the way through, you will realize that he did not say that, but the video intentionally cuts out his words to make it seem as if he said that there was no power harassment.

A video of this is being widely circulated.

This video is a clip taken from a news broadcast in August. If you listen to what Okutani, the prefectural assembly member, says in its entirety, it becomes clear that he did not say such a thing. However, the video has been intentionally edited to make it appear as though he is stating there was no power harassment.

Moreover, the date on the screen has been removed. It is astonishing that even legal professionals, such as lawyers, are believing and spreading this video.

If it has been concluded that there was no power harassment, why is the hundred-article committee still ongoing? Don’t they think that’s odd?

 

Additionally, regarding the claim that there was no power harassment, Tachibana asserts that the late former head of the prefectural office had affairs with 10 people over 10 years, and feared that this would become public, which led to his suicide. He argues that power harassment was not the cause.

As for how Tachibana obtained the information about the 10 affairs in 10 years, he initially claimed that he received the audio data directly from former Vice Governor Yasutaka Katayama. However, Katayama has since stated, according to a report from Sankei Shimbun, that he has never met Tachibana.

Tachibana quickly responded by releasing a video on November 5 titled “N Party’s Tachibana: ‘I have never met him’—Explaining in writing regarding the Saito recall and the gubernatorial election, according to Sankei Shimbun”, on his YouTube channel.

“I was lying.”

He casually apologized, saying, “I was lying.” Furthermore, he even went as far as to say, “Lies are a means to an end.”

As for the claim of “10 affairs in 10 years,” which Tachibana mentioned in his political broadcast, what was the basis for that statement?

He said, “I just ended up saying 10 people as it is.”

On November 15, when Tachibana gave a speech north of Himeji Station and was asked by the audience about the basis for his claim, a video was posted showing his response. In the video, Tachibana said:

“The evidence is very thin. There was maybe one person who said it was about 10 people.”

It’s hard to believe. He continued:

“When you say multiple, it doesn’t sound like just 2 or 3 people. If it’s over 10 years and you say multiple, there must be at least 5 or 6 people. Some people even say it’s around 10.”

He continued:

“During the political broadcast, the ’10 years and 10 people’ stuck in my mind, and I just ended up saying 10 people. Well, I thought, ‘It’s fine.'”

He explained that he said it impulsively, but he continues to talk about it in subsequent speeches.

This is quite something. On November 29, Tachibana released the contents of his computer, but at this point, it doesn’t seem like he personally checked the former head of the prefectural office’s computer. Far from having weak evidence, where exactly was it?

Tachibana is now directing his criticism at Prefectural Councilor Okutani, claiming that the “Hundred-Article Committee withheld information to hide inconvenient facts” and that the real cause of death was the affair, which has been kept hidden all along. This seems to refer to the fact that the video of the witness questioning during the committee session on October 24 and 25 was not made public. However, on November 25, in a news broadcast, it was reported that Saito, through his attorney, had sent a statement to the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly’s Document Issues Investigation Special Committee.

“Until the footage is officially released, we ask that lawmakers refrain from sharing information with the media individually or expressing opinions on social media.”

It was reported that Saito had requested that, “Until the footage is officially released, we ask that lawmakers refrain from sharing information with the media individually or expressing opinions on social media.”

This shows that what Tachi was saying was different.

At least these three points have been revealed to be lies, so how will Tachi respond, and what will the people of Hyogo who supported Saito and Tachi’s followers think?

Indeed, there are problems with large media outlets like television and newspapers, but blindly believing the misinformation spread on SNS without attempting to verify it, and claiming that “there is truth in SNS,” is overly simplistic and dangerous.

Japanese television is prohibited from reporting on candidates during election periods to maintain fairness, but shouldn’t there have been a fact-check on the misinformation circulating on SNS?

Although the “Old Media” has declared defeat, there is still much that needs to be done. It’s time for the professionals in journalism to show their determination.