The following is an excerpt from a feature article by Hideo Tamura, Rui Abiru, and Fumito Ishibashi, titled "The Ministry of Finance, which controls political situations, is Japan's deep state," which is now on sale in the monthly magazine WiLL.
I have mentioned many times that the monthly magazine WiLL is a must-read for anyone who wants to know the truth and the facts as a person living in the 21st century.
After reading this chapter and a chapter of a feature article in a similar monthly magazine, Hanada, I came to a chilling transcendence regarding Mr. Abe's assassination.
Preamble omitted.
The Finance Bureaucrats Who Angered Mr. Abe
Ishibashi.
The first time Mr. Abe showed anger toward the Ministry of Finance was with the Yano Papers.
Koji Yano, who was then the incumbent Administrative Vice Minister of Finance, published an article titled "The Vice Minister of Finance, I Monograph: 'If things continue as they are, the nation's finances will collapse'" in the November 2021 issue of Bungeishunju (Japanese literary magazine).
The article's content was to decry Japan's aggressive fiscal policy as "loose change" and to criticize Japan's fiscal situation as "like the Titanic rushing toward an iceberg."
Abiru.
It ignited Mr. Abe's fire.
Ishibashi
Mr. Abe naturally took it as a declaration by the Ministry of Finance, through the Yano paper, that the era of Abenomics was over.
"Ishibashi, think about it. What would happen if Toyota Motor Corporation's financier said at a press conference, 'Our company is insolvent. Toyota's stock would plummet. Yano did the same thing. The fact that it did not affect the stock price proves that the market does not value his claims."
Then, in the end, he added, "The Yano paper may be the Ministry of Finance's declaration of war against me.''
Tamura.
After Mr. Abe stepped down as prime minister, he was at the forefront of the proactive fiscal camp that opposed the Ministry of Finance's tax hikes and austerity measures, so it is only natural that he would take it as a sign that he was being sold a fight.
Abiru
The Kishida administration took office at about the same time the Yano paper was published (October 2021).
Is this a mere coincidence?
Ishibashi
Immediately after that, in December 2021, the Ministry of Finance lobbied Prime Minister Kishida and Secretary General Toshimitsu Motegi to establish the Headquarters for the Promotion of Fiscal Soundness (headed by Fukushiro Nukaga) as an organization directly under the LDP president.
It was in response to the LDP policy chief Sanae Takaichi's decision to change the name of the "Headquarters for Promoting Fiscal Rehabilitation" from the LDP's Policy Research Council to the "Headquarters for Fiscal Policy Review" and to remove the word "rehabilitation" from its signboard.
That wasn't very pleasant, Mr. Abe.
He said, "I will not forgive Kishida if he does not carry on Abenomics."
Abiru
There is a glimpse of cunning in the fact that it has been placed under the president's direct control.
Tamura
Although the sign "fiscal soundness" is a plausible concept, the point is to achieve the goal of balancing the primary balance (PB).
Another criticism of Abe that may have involved the Ministry of Finance was the proposed appointment of a member of the Bank of Japan's Policy Board submitted to the Diet by the Kishida cabinet in March 2022.
Ishibashi.
Mr. Abe was furious about that one as well.
It was a proposal to replace Takeshi Kataoka, a stalwart of the reflationist (proactive fiscal policy) camp, who was stepping down at the end of his term, with Hajime Takada, chairman of the Global Research Center at Okasan Securities, who has been a constant critic of Abenomics.
Tamura.
Mr. Takada stands on the opposite side of Abenomics and the extraordinary-dimension easing, and he is like a spokesperson for the Ministry of Finance.
No wonder Mr. Abe is angry.
Ishibashi.
Mr. Abe said, "It was either me or a fool who trusted Mr. Kishida. Even Mr. Kishida had worked hard in my cabinet, so I thought he would know more. The Kochi-kai is no good after all. ......" He added angrily, "If they choose someone to succeed Haruhiko Kuroda as governor of the Bank of Japan who will abandon Krodanomics, it will be a political situation."
He was so fired up that he almost went around the country in full force for the 2022 Upper House election.
Tamura.
He was incredibly fired up, even though he wasn't the prime minister or president.
And so he lost his life in an unfortunate incident.
Abiru
Even if he did not show it publicly, Mr. Abe had criticized the Ministry of Finance even before that.
In my book "The Birth of the Prime Minister," published in December 2016, I wrote about Mr. Abe speaking disparagingly of the Ministry of Finance.
At the time, the relationship between the Ministry of Finance and Mr. Abe did not attract much public reaction because it was not a high-profile issue.
Ishibashi.
In a twist, Mr. Abe began to strongly distrust the Ministry of Finance around the time of the 2014 lower house election, which questioned the "postponement" of the consumption tax hike.
At that time, Shunsuke Kagawa, vice-minister of finance and close to Ichiro Ozawa, led the "surrounding network against the postponement'' of the consumption tax increase.
Mr. Kagawa visited Mr. Abe's guardian, former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, who has a strong influence in the political world, and also went around to the Soka Gakkai, the parent organization of the Kōmeitō, to lobby for the consumption tax hike not to be postponed anyway.
When I asked Mr. Abe, "Is it okay to let Mr. Kagawa do whatever he wants?'' he said, "Is Kagawa trying to manipulate me into a political situation?''
The Lower House election in late 2014 to decide whether or not to postpone the consumption tax hike was like the Ministry of Finance pulling the trigger for the dissolution of the Lower House.
The LDP won a landslide victory in this lower house election, so the winner is clear (laughs).
Tamura.
The Ministry of Finance is like the "Japanese Deep State."
It is extraordinary that the bureaucrats are trying to crush the decision-making of a democratically elected government with their entire organization.
The bureaucrats are rebelling against the prime minister, whom the people elected, so naturally, Mr. Abe is angry.
The "political maneuvering" being conducted by the Ministry of Finance violates the Constitution, which is the very foundation of democracy, and even negates the current election system.
Ishibashi
I had left the Sankei Shimbun's political affairs section at the time. Still, the editorial bureau chief asked me to write an inside article titled, "Is the Ministry of Finance setting up a political situation against me?"
Immediately after that, I received a phone call from an old acquaintance, a finance bureaucrat, who asked me, "Is the prime minister really saying that?"
I responded, "Actually, I changed the headline just a little bit, and instead of 'The Ministry of Finance,' I named 'Kagawa,' but if I wrote it as it was, it would have been too pitiful," to which he was at a loss his words.
Abiru
As expected, the Ministry of Finance shrank back.
It's a poignant story (lol).
Tamura
Regardless of ministry or agency, bureaucrats are afraid of having their proper names mentioned because it could affect their careers and future.
Therefore, they almost always ignore the media's accusations that "XX Ministry" is doing this or that while keeping their names secret, they are engaged in such manipulations.
They are trying to manipulate the political world to keep their names out of the public eye.
Omission
![](https://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/12/a5/fd513cce64e1026e3c2bc2a8b5df7cc4.jpg)
2023/12/23 in Kyoto