On July 30, 2025, former Osaka governor and lawyer Toru Hashimoto criticized the leader of the Japan Conservative Party, Naoki Hyakuta, and others with a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), saying, “Be aware that enormous amounts of taxpayers’ money are being spent on you.” This comment was in response to a video where Hyakuta and others explained remarks made by the party’s member of parliament, Haruo Kitamura, who had called Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba “ugly.”
Regarding Kitamura’s remarks, he had posted on X describing Ishiba as a “hideous, strange creature,” which led to widespread criticism. On July 28, Hashimoto referenced an article about this issue and criticized the Japan Conservative Party on X, stating, “Members of the Japan Conservative Party are too slanderous.”
He further criticized, “These are not comments one would expect from a parliament member living off taxpayer money. Previously, you could speak freely as a lawyer, but now you are a public official paid by taxes. Learn how to speak from scratch.”
Hashimoto continued to express his disapproval, lamenting that, “A ridiculous parliament member, still acting like a commentator without awareness of being a public official funded by vast taxes, has been born.”
Hyakuta responded to Hashimoto’s criticism on the 29th, arguing, “‘A hideous, strange creature’ refers not to Ishiba’s appearance but to his way of life and political stance. Anyone with normal comprehension should understand this easily, but apparently Hashimoto cannot. Seeing others criticize Kitamura in the same knee-jerk manner makes me despair at the declining literacy of Japanese people.”
On the 29th, Hashimoto retaliated by quoting an article about Hyakuta’s response, stating, “You folks in the Japan Conservative Party also eat from the taxes paid by those people you slander as leftists or pro-China. Realize that you are not commentators anymore.”
Additionally, on the 30th, Hashimoto reacted to a clipped video from a press conference held by the Japan Conservative Party the day before. In the video, at the end of the conference, Hyakuta was seen explaining, “If you take that as ‘appearance,’ then those who take it that way must think so themselves.”
In response to this video, Hashimoto criticized, “Do such things as a private citizen. Realize that enormous taxpayer money is being spent on you. These guys are ruining Japan’s morals and beauty.”
by MagazineKey4532