Your Party Leader Watanabe's Fate Hanging in the Air

Mori-O'hara | Sato @MoriOharaSato

Your Party leader Yoshimi Watanabe is getting grilled by his own party, Nagatacho, and the public for receiving 800 million yen from an aid.

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Watanabe borrowed 300 million yen in June 2010 and 500 million yen in November 2012. These weren't recorded in his income & spending report.

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Hence, if Watanabe used the funds for political activities and/or elections, he would be violating the Public Offices Election Law and/or

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the Political Funds Control Law. Watanabe said he used the funds for "personal matters". However, this claim by him is dubious at best,

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considering the timing of the funding, and also the lender's statement. According to the lender, the funds were "for election purposes".

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Watanabe has shunned himself from the public eye since late March. He is a former LDP member and the son of Michio Watanabe, a LDP political

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heavy-weight and former Deputy Prime Minister. Watanabe broke away from LDP and founded Your Party in August 2009. It's said that Watanabe's

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unwillingness to cooperate with Japan Restoration Party, another newly-established mid-sized party, lead to LDP's triumph in the 2012 lower

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elections. Watanabe has been a lower house member since 1996.