The case of alleged tax evasion by a former head of a regional taxation bureau is no doubt most galling for the vast majority of taxpayers who are feeling the heavy weight of tax bills during this recession.

In the case, exposed last week by Tokyo public prosecutors, tax accountant Tsunekichi Hamada, a former chief of Sapporo Regional Taxation Bureau, has been arrested on a charge of violating the Income Tax Law to the tune of 250 million yen. Over four years since his retirement in 1996, Hamada is accused of concealing some -- about 740 million yen -- of the income he received in the form of consultant fees from up to 200 companies. Before his promotion to the Sapporo post, he had served as chief personnel inspector -- a "policeman's role" in enforcing official discipline -- at the National Tax Administration Agency. So, his arrest must have sent shock waves through the taxation bureaucracy.

The case has also highlighted the shifty attitude of companies that paid large consultant fees to Hamada in the hope that he could and would influence his juniors to help soften tax inspections. This situation is related to the fact that it is easy for retired tax bureaucrats to obtain qualifications as tax accountants. Tax authorities and the Japan Federation of Certified Public Tax Accountants' Associations must conduct a sweeping review of the qualifications and duties of tax accountants and make efforts to restore the public's trust.