Prefectural Employees Stand at Attention, While Hostile Forces Face Retaliation Through Personnel Actions… The Turbulent Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly: “The Abnormal, Outdated State of Local Assemblies”

Prefectural employees stood at attention to greet him

Allegations of bribery surrounding the speaker’s position, expensive overseas study tours, and a whistleblower report from a prefectural assembly member—

In the wake of a series of scandals surrounding the Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly, former Speaker Isao Kurauchi (72)—known as the “Godfather of the Prefectural Assembly”—and four assembly members implicated in the allegations resigned.On the 9th of this month, a speaker election was held, and Michito Oshima (74) of the Liberal Democratic Party caucus was elected as the successor; however, local residents still view prefectural politics with skepticism. A reporter for a local newspaper said:

“Not only prefectural employees, but also the local media were quite cautious around the prefectural assembly’s heavyweights, led by Mr. Kurauchi. Prefectural employees would even stand at attention and greet him by saying, ‘Mr. Kurauchi!’ The media also avoided asking Mr. Kurauchi questions directly, instead gathering information from those around him.It seems the Nishinippon Shimbun was the only outlet conducting undercover investigative reporting on the series of allegations, but Mr. Kurauchi appeared to be complacent, thinking, ‘They probably won’t actually “attack” me.’

In fact, even after the issues came to light, there’s no sign that he ever sought the assistance of lawyers or crisis management professionals. It wasn’t just Mr. Kurauchi; a culture of collusion among prefectural assembly members, officials, and the media had become deeply ingrained in prefectural politics. The prefecture and the municipalities represented by these influential assembly members are being flooded with protest calls.”

It has already been reported numerous times that the root of the problem lies in the “cronyism” within the prefectural government. Testimonies are emerging that the assembly itself showed excessive deference toward Mr. Kurauchi. However, there is also a persistent view that “the most culpable are not so much the ‘boss’ himself, but those around him.” A source involved in Fukuoka Prefectural government affairs says:

Give Rival Factions the Cold Shoulder in Personnel Decisions

“Mr. Kurauchi himself is actually quite approachable when you meet him in person. Few of those close to him speak ill of him. It was Mr. Kurauchi who fostered a culture of targeting lawmakers who wouldn’t kowtow to him or people who wouldn’t pay up, but it wasn’t Mr. Kurauchi himself who took direct action—it was the lawmakers around him.”

The “Don’s” influence extended to national politics as well. A prefectural government official continued:

“While he naturally kept his distance from cabinet-level figures like Taro Aso (85) and House of Representatives member Ryota Takeda (58), he was close to House of Councillors member Toshishi Oya (59).House of Representatives members Wataru Kurihara (60), Takahiro Inoue (64), and Makoto Oniki (53) are all former Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly members; in Fukuoka, a very high proportion of national lawmakers come from the prefectural assembly. In the past, members of the National Diet served as chairmen of the Fukuoka Prefectural Federation of the Liberal Democratic Party, but in recent years, prefectural assembly members have taken on that role.“I suppose Mr. Aso was also being considerate toward Mr. Kurauchi.”

There had even been an “incident” in which even members of the Diet were unable to voice criticism of the “Don.”

“In 2016, during the by-election for Fukuoka’s 6th District, Mr. Kurauchi’s eldest son, Ken, switched from his traditional stronghold in the 7th District to the 6th District, sparking a massive backlash from voters in the 6th District. It turned into a conservative split election against House of Representatives member Jiro Hatoyama (47).Although Mr. Hatoyama won the by-election, he incurred Mr. Kurauchi’s wrath and was expelled from the prefectural chapter. Fearing retaliation in personnel matters, even members of the Diet could no longer easily voice dissent to Mr. Kurauchi.” (Ibid.)

However, media coverage intensified after Prefectural Assembly Member Motoaki Yoshimatsu (58) and others testified that “before assuming the speakership, he was demanded to pay a total of approximately 20 million yen by several senior members of the LDP caucus and complied.” Kurauchi’s faction found itself increasingly cornered.

“Mr. Yoshimatsu and his alleged backer, Akihiko Nakamura (71)—a veteran politician who has been elected 11 times—have a history of being expelled from the LDP caucus.“In April of ’25, Mr. Kurauchi—who viewed Mr. Nakamura as a thorn in his side—resorted to a drastic move: he dissolved the LDP caucus, reformed it on the very same day, and then expelled Mr. Nakamura from the group. Mr. Nakamura’s anger erupted at this outrageous response, which later led to the whistleblowing incident,” said the local newspaper reporter cited earlier.

The “common sense” that has long prevailed within the Fukuoka Prefectural Federation is just one example of the outdated culture of local assemblies. There are still no signs that the turmoil in prefectural politics is subsiding.