Overview
- Fumitake Fujita said on November 2 via YouTube that he will stop placing any further orders with the company led by his first public secretary.
- He maintained the transactions were lawful and scheduled a detailed explanation for a November 4 news conference.
- Shimbun Akahata’s Sunday edition reported roughly ¥21 million was paid to the firm from June 2017 to November 2024 for flyer printing and related work, with about ¥19.65 million coming from public funds.
- The same report said the firm paid the secretary about ¥7.2 million per year in compensation, framing the arrangement as a potential recycling of tax money.
- Fujita acknowledged concerns about the appearance of a conflict of interest and said the firm had been used for its expertise, emphasizing that contracts were with the corporation rather than the individual.