午夜剧场

Is Kasumigaseki—where central government ministries gather—and local governments intentionally making the use of tax money difficult to see? As I unraveled this hypothesis through reporting, I reached unpublished "primary information" on social media and other platforms, which piqued my curiosity. However, reporting under my real name was always accompanied by fear, and I felt hesitant many times. The only way to dispel that anxiety was to keep accumulating more interviews and research.

The catalyst was the government's "Sustainable Benefit Program." It provided up to 2 million yen to businesses whose revenues deteriorated due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with total benefits reaching 5.5 trillion yen. However, this project was outsourced to a general incorporated association established by major advertising agencies and others. It was referred to as a "middleman corporation," and one source testified that the purpose of using a general incorporated association was to "legally" bypass the oversight of government agencies. It was a method that the government had been forced to overlook for many years.

I also delved into the issue of "personnel cost unit prices" in the outsourced work for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics. The venue management contracts and their breakdowns stated amounts such as "up to 350,000 yen per person per day," which is about five times higher than typical government-outsourced projects. Later, bid-rigging regarding venue management came to light, leading to a series of arrests among officials from the organizing committee and the contracted companies. The documents I obtained were highly likely the basis for retroactively adjusting figures decided at prices close to whatever was asked for as "personnel cost unit prices." I approached the reality of these shrouded "personnel cost unit prices."

In addition, the "handout" policies that supported medical institutions and companies during the pandemic showed a clear contrast between the aspects that were effective and the uses that deviated from common sense. I also covered the reality of public funds being privately exploited in "local" settings such as fire brigades and agriculture, funds referred to as "legal slush funds," and the costs of defense equipment that continue to spiral upward.

Tax revenue for fiscal 2021 reached a record high of 67 trillion yen. On the other hand, social security expenditures continue to swell, and fiscal spending due to the pandemic exceeded 100 trillion yen. Currently, there are moves toward tax increases under the banner of "drastic reinforcement of defense capabilities," but shouldn't there be things to review before that? With this awareness of the problem, I spent three years following Kasumigaseki during the "emergency" of the pandemic.

Yuki Takahashi

Kobunsha Shinsho

248 pages, 946 yen (tax included)

*Affiliations and titles are as of the time of publication.