Prime Minister “Cherry Blossom Viewing Party” Invitation to Expand Scale and Review Review, including Reductions 11:57 on November 20
Concerning the “Cherry Blossom Viewing Party” hosted by the Prime Minister, Prime Minister Abe admitted at the plenary session of the Upper House of the House of Councilors that he had expressed his own opinions on the recommendation of the invitee, He said that he should reflect on his thoughts, including a reduction of invitees.
Among them, Prime Minister Abe said that he was not involved in the final process of finalizing the Cabinet Secretariat and Cabinet Office regarding the selection of invitees for viewing the cherry blossoms. I have been requesting recommendations from the Cabinet Secretariat to the official residence and the ruling party for many years, and my office has made recommendations. "
“In my office, we have been recruiting a wide range of applicants, including those who seem to be active in the community, including those related to supporters' associations. I received some comments about the recommender, ”he admits that he had also expressed his opinion on the inviter ’s recommendation.
In addition, Prime Minister Abe said, “It has been done for many years, but the selection criteria for invitees are ambiguous, and as a result, the number has risen. “We ’re considering clarification and transparency in the invitation process, and we ’ve decided to do a general review, including the budget and the number of invitees, while listening to a wide range of opinions.”
In addition, Prime Minister Abe held a social gathering of supporters held on the night before the day before 2013, and revealed that the venue was a hotel where many participants stayed.
On the other hand, in 2015, the hotel of the venue was different from the accommodations of the participants. “It was found that the venue could not be secured due to an administrative error, and the dinner venue was suddenly changed to another hotel. I have consulted with the hotel and know that the price has been set at 5000 yen per person, and at this dinner, the participants paid the actual expenses, and there was no income or expense from the supporters. " Said.
In addition, Prime Minister Abe explained that the organizer of the social gathering was his support party, “My office staff is consulting with the hotel for the various arrangements. During the process, the hotel didn't issue a statement, etc. We recognize that there is no need to include it in the political funds report because there is no income or expenditure as a sponsorship association. It was.