A $4,620 expense by Governor Saito faces scrutiny for alleged election law violations. Investigation ongoing, future unclear.
1Kei-chan at night★.Dec. 2, 2024 (Mon) 23:30:47.21ID:gI218g9A9
12/2 (Mon) 20:26 Sankei Shimbun On the 2nd, it was revealed that a complaint against Hyogo Prefectural Police and others for violating the Public Offices Election Act in connection with the November gubernatorial election in which Hyogo Governor Saito Motohiko was re-elected has been sent to Saito and others. The indictment claims that the approximately 700,000 yen spent on a PR company involved in Saito’s social networking site strategy was “remuneration for election campaigning, which should have been free of charge,” but Saito’s side denies any illegality, saying it was “payment for poster production and the like.” The investigative authorities are expected to make a careful decision on whether to accept the complaint. ■ Election campaign? On November 20, the representative of the PR company posted on an online posting platform that he had been “in charge of all PR for Saito’s camp” and that “as the supervisor, I was responsible for drawing up the election strategy, setting up the account, planning the content, etc.” He also described the SNS operation strategy as being in stages, such as “sowing seeds” and “nurturing,” but later deleted this. Based on the content of the posts, the indictment points out that the PR company’s use of social media “constitutes election campaigning using the Internet.” At a press conference on November 27, Mr. Saito’s lawyer also stated, “If (the representative personally) were to upload a video during an election period, for example, it would be seen as election campaigning,” but claimed that employees other than the representative “are not involved (in election campaigning).” The purpose of the reward The biggest focus of attention in determining whether this allegation constitutes a violation of the Public Offices Election Act is the purpose of the reward. Mr. Saito’s agent explained that based on an invoice sent by the PR company, he paid a total of 715,000 yen for five items, including the production of posters and campaign slides. “Payment of compensation (for posters, etc.) as part of political activities or preparatory acts for candidacy is permitted by law,” he said, emphasizing that the activities of the leader aside from the five items are “unpaid volunteer work by individuals.” In response, the indictment stated that while Saito’s representative showed an invoice at the press conference, the estimate had not been made public, making it unclear whether the payment was commensurate with the work. On the other hand, citing social media exchanges between key members of Saito’s camp and the representative of the PR company, he pointed out that the representative was in charge of the social media strategy. They claim that the payment includes social media services and is therefore illegal. This is a long post, so here is the source.
Date and time of posting: 2024/12/02 (Mon) 21:04:46.22 Previous thread What did Governor Saito pay 700,000 yen to? No sign of indictment, no prospect of filing, senior investigator says “it will take time.”
>First, when we asked former Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office Special Investigation Division lawyer Wakasa whether the complaint would be accepted, he said “there is a high possibility.” It has been pointed out that in some cases it could take anywhere from six months to nearly a year to make a decision on whether to prosecute. >Even if the governor is indicted, it will take 3 to 4 years for him to be found guilty, so generally speaking, he will be able to continue in his position as governor. [Commentary] Will the criminal complaint “indictment” against Governor Saito Motohiko and the head of the PR company be accepted? What will be the decision on whether to indict or not? Is there a possibility that they will lose their jobs? //news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/13740a8ae56175ffab0de0e450ded205a2d44272.
Recently, journalist Shinohara exposed the fraudulent receipt of survivor’s pension by KK’s mother, but her claim was rejected and returned. It seems that it will only be accepted if the situation is extremely bad.
I just want the governor’s safety to be well protected. This is the most entertaining theater ever. The prosecutors’ office’s special investigation unit must be really motivated.
It’s hilarious how the old media is running around in confusion, saying things like whether volunteering is cheap or expensive and whether volunteering is a crime.
Well, try doing all the activities that the president mentioned for just 700,000 yen. It’s a huge loss. An acquisition won’t work unless the other party benefits from it.
Wouldn’t it be okay to indict him two years later to avoid criticism from the prefecture for the cost of the re-election? Politically, he’s already a dead man, so that would be politically enough rather than arresting him right away.
Former Tokyo District Public Prosecutor’s Office employee Wakasa apparently told the media that if the governor’s side was prepared to fight the case in court, he would be able to complete his term, so trials in Japan take a long time.
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