Tokyo Detective

Chapter 507 "The Civil War" is Not Over Yet

If President America in the last century was wary of the Federal Reserve and needed the Treasury Department's cooperation to gradually weaken the Fed's power...

The Ministry of Finance is comparable to a combination of the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department. The country cannot reduce the power of the Ministry of Finance, and this is indeed the case.

The reason for the collapse of the Ministry of Finance was not that it was defeated by the Japanese Prime Minister, but the Plaza Accord. It was the bursting of that bubble. You could say that the Ministry of Finance was killed by America, or you could say that it destroyed itself.

At the time, another scandal in the Ministry of Finance became the trigger for the explosion: the underwear scandal.

Under the guise of hospitality, major Japanese banks and securities firms have long provided elite officials and bureaucrats of the Ministry of Finance with extravagant hospitality and bribes. The scheme is extremely complex, with the "waiters" wearing miniskirts and no underwear during these receptions.

Because of this incident, the masses, who were already furious about the bubble economy, stormed the Tibet Autonomous Region.

Japanese politicians finally found an opportunity to exploit public opinion and dismantle the Ministry of Finance under the guise of reform. Ultimately, the Special Investigation Department arrested several high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Finance and many bank directors, ending the "internal strife" among Japanese bureaucrats and politicians.

Of course, the dismantling of the Ministry of Finance does not mean the elimination of the bureaucratic system that shakes the country. Although the current Ministry of Finance only has the authority to manage finances and taxes, it is still the most powerful leader in the bureaucratic system among the various ministries and agencies of the Japanese government, and even the cabinet government cannot interfere much.

As for why the Japanese bureaucracy remains powerful, it's due to the promotion system at the provincial and ministerial levels.

In reality, there are two types of positions in the ministry: ministers, vice ministers, and parliamentary secretaries are appointed by the cabinet government, while administrative vice ministers who do the actual work are selected and promoted internally by the ministry.

In theory, a vice-minister can serve for a long time, but in Japan, most vice-ministers in various ministries only serve for one year before resigning, and their colleagues from the same cohort also resign, ensuring that the vice-minister's power is the greatest and unshakeable.

This is an unspoken rule in the Japanese bureaucratic system: retired officials who served at the same time as vice-ministers often become senior consultants in various related organizations and companies.

More importantly, the network woven by bureaucrats makes the provincial government's intelligence capabilities, mobilization capabilities, and loyalty far surpass those of the major political factions in Japan.

The only high-ranking official in the bureaucratic system that Naoki Hanyu has taken down in recent years is Takaoka Jiro, the Vice-Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare. Moreover, this old man did not leave office after only one year as per the unspoken rules, so even though he had considerable influence in the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, even ministers were wary of him.

In reality, he wasn't one of the members who had formed a tacit understanding, at least not a core member.

This practice persisted until the early 21st century, only to be banned by the first victor.
However, while it is officially prohibited, the system is actually maintained in secret.

The first victor was followed by the second. He established a personnel department and reclaimed the appointment authority of nearly 600 senior executives.

However, this power can only be used by a strong prime minister. Recent cabinet governments and prime ministers in Japan have not been qualified to use it. Otherwise, the power of the bureaucracy would have made them back down, and the actual situation would have reverted to the point where they could only appoint ministers and assistants.

Over the past 30 years, the power of bureaucrats has been gradually diminished, but they have also developed their own methods of coping.

That is, procrastination and inaction, not openly opposing any policy, and using complicated procedures—legal and respectable—to let a policy that is unfavorable to the bureaucratic system fizzle out.

The famous Xiaguan literature is a prime example (Xiaguan is where the various provincial departments are located). The speech of provincial officials is extremely obscure and full of technical jargon.

Anyway, when Naoki Hanyu listened to these officials talk, the tone would change over time, and he could only describe them as cunning bureaucrats.

In reality, the Metropolitan Police Department and even the National Police Agency are bureaucratic systems. If Naoki Hanyu were to take away the power to appoint members of the police system, it would only create a bureaucratic system that is even more terrifying than the current provincial and ministerial agencies.

Naoki Hanyu quietly watched Masashi Ueto chat with several officials and the leader of the Truth Society, then took advantage of the opportunity to walk around the hall, leaving some things in certain places, until the birthday celebration ended and he and Natsumi Senbon left.

Inside the guild hall, in the cult leader's office.

Hiraoka Hippo watched the believers leave from his window. With the rise of the internet, the votes of various ruling parties have declined in recent years. While politicians outwardly maintain connections with religions to gain votes, their actual support for religions has decreased. For example, the Heavenly Patrol Truth Society has long been labeled a cult online. The public and new believers are likely to abandon their faiths based on online opinions, leading to a significant slowdown, or even negative growth, in the number of believers for various religions.

The religious federation once tried to get the cabinet government to regulate public opinion on religion, but they refused, and every term has refused.

If you want to enjoy the votes that religion brings, but don't want to be labeled as unfree by the public, why can't you do what America did and force through a bill like the Squid Act?
Therefore, religious groups intend to transfer some of their resources for politicians to bureaucrats, since these people don't care about polls.

"Old friend, what's your decision on your end?"

The man whom Hiraoka Hippo called an old friend was none other than Ueto Masashi, and it was under his care that the Ministry of Finance was dismantled.

"I don't think it's feasible; disrupting the balance would be bad for everyone."

"Old friend, don't try to fool me. I don't believe that you bureaucrats, seeing that each cabinet is worse than the last, have never thought of taking back certain things, such as certain restrictions or certain personnel powers."

Masashi Ueto did not answer. He originally looked down on the Tenshun Shinrikyo, but the cabinet was getting worse year by year, and each term was worse than the last, which made him interested.

During the 30-year civil war, the national civil service law was gradually improved. Although it was ostensibly to prohibit the hereditary succession of the bureaucracy, the bureaucratic system had many ways to circumvent it.

The advantages of children of officials include a monopoly on educational resources. At the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Law, children from prominent families make up 42% of the student body, and in civil service exam preparation courses, children from prominent families also account for 72%. 62% of bureaucratic families have access to internal question banks, making the exams easier for them.

There are also internship pathways, interview coaching, marriage alliances, and the like.

There are ways to circumvent the National Civil Service Law, such as changing one's surname to one's mother's family name.

The generational succession is a case of the grandparents being bureaucrats and the parents changing careers.

Local officials may use roundabout methods, such as first serving as local civil servants and then being transferred to the central government.

Although each cabinet government has been worse than the last in recent years, they still try to find ways to combat and circumvent the system.

Perhaps we should give the domestic government a major overhaul, and let them relax their control over bureaucratic succession a bit.

Masashi Ueto's son changed careers so that his grandson could become a bureau chief in the Ministry of Finance. Now, with the legislation becoming more and more comprehensive, it is difficult for his great-grandson to become a civil servant even if he takes his mother's surname.

Masashi Ueto really wanted to help his great-grandson rise to power before he died, because in his eyes, his great-grandson was the future of the entire family and far more capable than his sons and grandsons.

If one waits until death to see most of their political connections disappear, their great-grandson will definitely have to take a few decades longer and make the wrong choice.

So Masashi Ueto was persuaded.

"You guys always have some kind of potion that can rejuvenate people, right? If you can get me a safe one, I'll agree to it."

"Of course, there are already finished products over there."

The two 80-year-old men stared at each other, each harboring their own secrets. Ueto Masashi was unaware that while he was discussing the future of the church, the National Police Agency and even the Metropolitan Police Department had already begun to take action.

Someone's fangs were already at the prey's neck, while the prey was eating grass without even realizing it.

(End of this chapter)