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DPJ’s deeds of decadence still lag LDP legacy

Satsuki Eda
Satsuki Eda
Following an article in the Mainichi Shimbun (Sep. 30) that detailed expense claims for adult entertainment by the offices of Democratic Party of Japan members, evening tabloid Nikkan Gendai (Oct. 2) finds that the DPJ has a lot of catching up to do in becoming Japan’s premier perv party.

The Mainichi revealed that 5.82 million yen in taxpayers’ money was used, and designated as being for “political purposes,” between 2003 and 2007 by the offices of five senior members of the newly elected DPJ at various kyabakura and hostess bars, where female staff pour drinks and engage in conversation with male customers.

The biggest spender was Satsuki Eda, presently the President of the House of Councillors, who paid 2.37 million yen at 11 bars, including a Nishi Asakusa kyabakura. The Minister of of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Tatsuo Kawabata, filed 1.14 million yen in claims for trips to six clubs in Akasaka and a “new-half” cabaret in Shinjuku.

The offices of Masayuki Naoshima, the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Takeaki Matsumoto, the Chairman of the Lower House on Rules and Administration, and Yorihisa Matsuno, the Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, submitted reports totaling 2.31 million yen for similar activities.

The Mainichi includes a quotation whereby a lawyer for Matsuno says that such filings are acceptable since meetings were held and the clubs were not overtly offering sexual services. Yet Nikkan Gendai says that such dubious expenses are more readily explained by the accepted environment of Nagatacho, whose ruling party was the Liberal Democratic Party until August’s lower house election.

“The LDP plays way harder than this,” explains fuzoku journalist Yukio Murakami. “The big names are the ones who indulge in this ‘abnormal’ behavior. One of the now deceased prime ministers was well-known for enjoying sadistic play at SM clubs. We also had another former PM who liked to take on the role of that of a baby at clubs.”

The writer adds that places offering a chance to shoot outdoor photos up a girl’s skirt and the open molestation of the staff are popular choices. “Most of these types,” he says of the lawmakers, “are in their 40s and 50s and come from affluent families. They spent their youth studying all the time.”

Nikkan Gendai says that one fuzoku-jo (female sex worker) revealed that a former LDP minister was a frequent customer of deri heru (out-call sex) services.

Pink writer, Kazuo Kajiyama, adds that an employee at an out-call service specializing in girls weighing over 90 kilograms told him that politicians would often make reservations for the club’s offerings for two- to three-hour stints at hotels, with face-sitting being a common request.

“Another big-name politician,” Kajiyama goes on, “invested in a number of tall and leggy escort ladies. He then created a membership system whereby other politicians could order the girls for 100,000 yen a pop. My friend who is a race queen didn’t make the cut so the quality must have been very high.”

Compared to these acts, Nikkan Gendai can only chuckle at the DPJ revelations, designating them to be mere child’s play.