Other Politicians Also Held Political Fundraising Parties Amid the Kumamoto Earthquake… Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly Exposes a “Den of Corruption”

“Is self-preservation the top priority after all?”

“The chair of the prefectural assembly caucus, who hosted a party on the very night of the earthquake, has resigned, but the root of the problem lies in the environment that breeds such individuals one after another.From city council members to prefectural assembly members to members of the National Diet, they’re all cut from the same cloth. The Fukuoka political world—this den of corruption—has reached a point where it can no longer clean up its own act.” (A source in Fukuoka’s political circles)

On the very night that an earthquake with a maximum seismic intensity of 7 struck Kumamoto Prefecture, Tosho Matsuo (53), then chairman of the Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly’s Liberal Democratic Party caucus, hosted a beer party in Kitakyushu City. Far from showing any remorse, he even went so far as to say, “I’m glad we did it,” and, as is well known, he eventually resigned as chairman of the caucus.

Amid a string of scandals—including demands for money under the pretext of laying the groundwork for the speaker’s post and excessively expensive overseas study tours—a barrage of criticism rained down on him for this misconduct. However, Mr. Matsuo was not the only politician who held a political fundraising party on the very night of the earthquake.Shortly after 6:00 p.m. that same day, the “Makoto Oniki Politics and Economy Forum” was held in the fourth-floor ballroom of the Hotel New Otani Hakata in Fukuoka City. The speaker was Makoto Oniki (53), a member of the House of Representatives from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) representing Fukuoka’s 2nd District.

“Cheers!”

In front of nearly 400 guests, a sitting Fukuoka City Council member loudly led the toast. Although the earthquake reportedly shook the building hard enough to cause some of the chandelier’s ornaments to fall before the event began, the gathering proceeded regardless.

“The admission fee was 20,000 yen, and in addition to the incumbent Diet member, there were many prefectural and city council members in attendance. I had been curious to see what kind of remarks the prefectural council member serving as head of Mr. Oniki’s election campaign headquarters would make, but he did not speak at all.One prefectural assembly member revealed, ‘If I speak, I’ll have to apologize for the allegations of money changing hands regarding the speaker’s position,’ and instead had a city council member lead the toast. Seeing how he seemed to pass the responsibility onto someone else, I thought that, in the end, self-preservation must be his top priority.”

The depth of the darkness in Fukuoka’s political world was brought home to me by the actions of Shuji Inatomi (55), a former member of the House of Representatives from the Centrist Reform Alliance, whose political base is the same Fukuoka 2nd District as Mr. Oniki’s.On August 1, after the damage from the Aeon Mall explosion—including the severing of transportation networks, water shortages, and power outages—had become increasingly apparent, he held a political and economic seminar at the KKR Hotel Hakata in Fukuoka City.Although Mr. Inatomi is currently out of office, he is a seasoned politician who has been elected four times. A flyer obtained by FRIDAY states, “Starts at 1:00 p.m., admission fee 10,000 yen.”

“In a candidate questionnaire for the 2024 House of Representatives election, Mr. Inatomi responded that political fundraising parties ‘should be banned as a matter of policy.’ Yet here he is, hosting a party himself. What’s more, he surely had time to consider canceling or postponing it,” said another political insider.

Don’s eldest son is set to succeed him

When asked why he held the political fundraising party, Mr. Oniki replied, “The earthquake struck an hour and a half before the event, making it difficult to reach all the participants.”Mr. Inatomi replied, “Taking into account the situation in the disaster-stricken areas and the impact on holding the event in Fukuoka, we decided to proceed as scheduled,” and continued, “There was no entertainment, and the only beverage served was a single bottle of tea; we also called for donations and relief supplies for the disaster-stricken areas.”

A reporter from a local television station lamented, “We can no longer even count on the opposition parties in Fukuoka to criticize the Liberal Democratic Party.” This is because the system of mutual oversight between the ruling and opposition parties is not functioning.

“It wasn’t just the LDP that was part of the network of Isao Kurauchi (72), known as the ‘godfather of the prefectural assembly.’ Invitations to overseas study tours were extended to centrist and other faction members as well, and some opposition assembly members even went on the tours together. Because everyone is part of the same circle, self-restraint has broken down.”

A resolution calling for Mr. Kurauchi to resign from his position as speaker—submitted by Prefectural Assembly Member Motoaki Yoshimatsu (58), who broke away from that circle and exposed the reality of the money exchanges—was withdrawn from a vote.Mr. Kurauchi reportedly intends to resign from the speakership, but he has stated that he will do so at “the appropriate time,” leaving the timing unclear.

“Mr. Kurauchi is also the chairman of the National Association of Prefectural Assembly Speakers, so he surely wants to serve out his term.However, rumors are circulating that he will not run in the prefectural assembly election scheduled for next spring. Chikugo City, where Mr. Kurauchi is based, is a single-seat district. If he were to resign now, a special election would have to be held. It could easily turn into a referendum on Mr. Kurauchi’s political legacy, which the Liberal Democratic Party would likely want to avoid,” said the same source.

Already, rumors are circulating that his eldest son, Ken, will succeed Mr. Kurauchi.

“After serving as a secretary to LDP Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Yoshimasa Hayashi (65), he ran in the 2016 by-election for the 6th District of Fukuoka in the House of Representatives. At the time, Mr. Kurauchi, who was chairman of the prefectural chapter, attempted to send his eldest son to national politics with the chapter’s endorsement.However, he suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Jiro Hatoyama (47), the second son of former Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Kunio Hatoyama. Although his name is being mentioned as a successor, there is a strong sentiment in the local community that ‘that eldest son probably won’t be up to the task,’” said the political source cited earlier.

FRIDAY asked Mr. Kurauchi about his future plans in light of this series of issues, but received no response.

A Fukuoka City Council member lamented:

“Even if the ‘Don’ leaves, a new ‘Don’ will emerge. Can Fukuoka really change…?”

From the September 4, 2026, issue of *FRIDAY*