Saito and Tachibana Expose Dangers of SNS-Driven Elections

Takashi Tachibana’s candidacy changed the course of events.

In 2024, one of the most talked-about figures was former Hyogo Prefectural Governor Motohiko Saito.

The incident began with an anonymous whistleblower letter titled “Regarding the illegal acts of former Hyogo Prefectural Governor Motohiko Saito” sent in March to ten external organizations, including the Hyogo Prefectural Police, four media outlets, one member of the National Diet, and four prefectural assembly members, from the former head of the prefectural citizens’ bureau, who later died by suicide in July of the previous year.

In response, Saito held a press conference.

“Just because there are grievances, creating and circulating documents containing a pack of lies during working hours is a dereliction of duty for a public servant.”

His harsh criticism brought the issue to the surface, and it started to attract public attention.

Furthermore, the public servant who filed the complaint.

“Protested by taking their own life.”

It was left behind as a statement before they took their own life, which intensified media coverage and developed into a major scandal. The investigation by the Document Issue Investigation Special Committee (Hyakujou Committee) is still ongoing.

However, before the investigation results were released by the committee, on September 19 of the same year, the no-confidence motion against Governor Saito was presented to the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly and was passed unanimously. Governor Saito did not dissolve the assembly but instead lost his position as governor and formally announced his candidacy for the upcoming special election.

In the gubernatorial election, the leader of the NHK from the People party, Takashi Tachibana, suddenly announced his candidacy. However, he had no intention of becoming the governor of Hyogo; his goal was to support Saito.

To support Saito, he believed that the best approach was to convince voters that the governor did nothing wrong. He started by asserting there was no power harassment, and claimed that the former prefectural office director’s death was unrelated to Saito but rather a result of fear of having his infidelity exposed. He distorted the information by spreading uncertain details, including claims of cheating with 10 people over 10 years and non-consensual sex.

Tachibana claimed to have found evidence on the former director’s computer, but early on, he acknowledged that the basis for the cheating with 10 people was extremely weak.

“The evidence was extremely weak.”

He himself admitted.