As Japan’s IR corruption scandal widens, a Kyodo News survey indicates that almost 71 percent of those polled believe the government should reconsider its decision to approve integrated resorts (IRs) in the country.
In late December, Liberal Democratic Party ( LDP) member Tsukasa Akimoto was arrested on charges he took cash and gifts from Chinese iLottery firm 500.com, which had hoped to win an IR license in the country.
Five more lawmakers have since come under suspicion for similar offenses.
In light of the scandal, 70.6 percent of those surveyed want lawmakers to take a second look at the plan to open three multibillion-dollar IRs in the next few years, a proposal designed to stoke the economy by inviting international investment and boosting foreign tourism. Just over 21 percent of respondents support IRs.
Akimoto, a former member of Shinzo Abe’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, who directed Japan’s casino gaming policy from August 2017 to October 2018, is accused of taking cash, airfare, and hotel rooms from 500.com, the Chinese online and sports betting firm at the center of the scandal. More than 86 percent of the respondents surveyed by Kyodo News said they are “anxious” or “somewhat anxious” about the forecast for the world’s third-largest economy.
Meanwhile, the government’s Casino Regulatory Commission held its first meeting. At a news conference after the meeting, commission head Michio Kitamura, former chief of the Fukuoka High Public Prosecutor’s Office, said “The members of the commission and staff of its secretariat will unite and work with a sense of urgency to build trust with the public over casino business. I plan to supervise our staff at the secretariat so that the commission’s fairness and neutrality will not be questioned,” Kitamura said.
According to the Japan Times, meanwhile, Nippon Ishin no Kai expelled lawmaker Mikio Shimoji from the party over money he received from a Chinese company at the center of a bribery scandal linked to casino resorts.
On Tuesday, Shimoji, a member of the House of Representatives, submitted a letter of resignation from the party to its leadership.
But Nippon Ishin refused to accept the letter and opted to oust him instead. Shimoji on Monday admitted that he received ¥1 million in cash from Chinese company 500.com Ltd., which was planning to open a so-called integrated resort in Japan. The party also decided to urge Shimoji to resign as a lawmaker.
Nippon Ishin, which is closely related to regional political group Osaka Ishin no Kai (One Osaka), apparently aims to minimize the scandal’s negative effects on its image as it hopes to attract a casino resort to Osaka Prefecture, pundits said.
Nippon Ishin Secretary-General Nobuyuki Baba told reporters in the city of Osaka that Shimoji has substantially hurt public trust in politicians.
“We want him to quit as a lawmaker as he has caused doubts among the public,” Baba said. There is no change in our party’s policy of seeking to bring an (integrated resort) to Osaka,” he added.
Late last month, Lower House member Tsukasa Akimoto, who was the Cabinet Office’s state minister in charge of the government’s project to launch casino resorts in the country, was arrested by public prosecutors on suspicion of receiving ¥3.7 million in bribes from 500.com.
