The Social Insurance Agency's investigation into pension-related frauds has found that pension premiums and benefits and other funds have been embezzled by municipal and agency workers in 99 cases, totaling more than ¥340 million. This new revelation undermines the people's trust in the nation's pension system. Between fiscal 1966 and 2001, employees of 44 municipal governments in 23 prefectures embezzled a total of ¥200.78 million in 49 cases, and from fiscal 1963 to fiscal 2006, SIA workers embezzled a total of ¥141.97 million in 50 cases.
The agency, which is part of the health and welfare ministry, says that pension recipients were not and will not be affected because the pension-related records that were tampered with by embezzlers have been rectified.
However, as health and welfare minister Yoichi Masuzoe said, the embezzlement is "shameful and unforgivable." What is striking is that while the agency was aware of about half of the embezzlement cases — 12 cases involving municipal workers and 18 others involving SIA workers — it did not disclose them to the public immediately.