Generous People for Taxation

Since taxation can always be an enemy of free society, it is not strange that people protest against tax hike. In Japan, not only politicians but also newspapers strangely advocate the necessity of raising consumption tax rate. Most people don’t protest because they understand the necessity of reducing national debt and higher tax is inevitable for that. In this context, we can see how the government control citizens and the people are very generous to wrong appropriation.

The consumption tax rate will be raised from 5% to 8% on October 2014, and to 10% on April 2015. The Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, is careful about it, because it may cool Japanese economy down. He emphasizes that considering the gross domestic products during April, May and June in 1013, he will decide whether or not the rate should be raised. But it is unlikely for him not to introduce new rate, because the tax hike has spent a great deal of political effort both by LDP and DPJ. The economic sector, worrying about accumulation of fiscal debt, will be disappointed with the reconsidering happening.

Main newspapers and TV stations have been supporting the introduction of new rate. Looking at the situation of Europe, in which Greece, Spain or Italy suffered from economic slump caused by huge amount of national debt, their reports reiterated warning people about possible Japan crisis. There is a contradiction, however. While the government is posing more tax to the people, PM Abe upholds targeted inflation policy. If the wage is held in low level, more amount of tax is posed on it and commodity price gets high, people’s life in Japan will be harder than ever. After the tax hike campaign, some of newspapers are warning about that possibility.

A serious problem of taxation in Japan is distrust of people against the government. The government introduced new policy called the reconstruction tax. From January 1, 2013, 2.1% of income tax payment is added as new tax for the reconstruction of Tohoku area suffered from the Great Northeastern Japan Earthquake. It continues for twenty-five years. But people are doubtful about the appropriation, after consecutive news about scandalous misuse of revenue for reconstruction.

The story was terrible. Government money for reconstruction was used, for example, for buying power shovels for job training on prisoners in jail, for maintenance of public road in Okinawa, or for reinforcing buildings of the National Tax Agency, all of which are with no relation to reconstruction from devastation in Tohoku. It became possible by interpretation of the law on reconstruction relief, which partly allows using money for disaster prevention. The interpreters are with no doubt bureaucrats.

People in Japan, anyway, pay for those new tax with no complaining to the government. It reminds of the long line of quake-suffered people waiting for rescue right after the devastation. But nobody knows how that tax money is used, or how it contributes to economic recovery. You need to understand that the government may misappropriate public money for their own interest. The interest is maintaining their authority for distributing national wealth.