The use of luxury cars by prefectural governments has been criticized by some local residents as "a waste of money," especially amid the economic strain caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The Yamaguchi prefectural government purchased a Century, the most luxurious model manufactured by Toyota Motor Corp., for 20.9 million yen. Also, the Hyogo prefectural government swapped its two official cars for Century vehicles, increasing the cost of their leases by 50%, drawing a barrage of complaints from residents who questioned the need for such luxury cars.
In August, a black Century sedan was delivered to the Yamaguchi prefectural government to serve as its official vehicle. The luxury model, after its first major redesign in 21 years, is equipped with a 20-speaker sound system, a reclining seat with a massage function, a large rear passenger monitor, and red floor mats.
Official vehicles carry executives such as governors and prefectural assembly chairs while they carry out their official duties. They are maintained and managed by local governments.
The Yamaguchi prefectural government at one time had three Century vehicles. However, two of the three have been traded in, namely a 2002 model reserved for honored guests, including members of the Imperial family, and a 2007 model used by the vice chair of the prefectural assembly. This currently leaves two Century vehicles in their possession -- a 2013 model used by the assembly chair and the recently acquired new model.
According to the prefectural government, the now traded-in car for honored guests had 78,000 kilometers on its odometer. Over three years, from fiscal 2017 to fiscal 2019, it was only used a total of 13 days, including two days when then-Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko visited the prefecture to attend the annual National Urban Greenery Fair in 2018.
According to the section in charge of managing prefectural government property, no vehicle outside of the Century line was considered for purchase because of its "reliability and record of performance."
As of Oct. 20, expressions of 164 opinions on the matter, mostly negatively, had been sent to the prefectural government.
"We had made plans to purchase a new vehicle in February, prior to the novel coronavirus outbreak. Other models will be considered at the next time of renewal," said the head of the section.
In Hyogo, the prefectural government changed its two official vehicles -- one reserved for the governor and the other for the prefectural assembly chairman -- from Toyota's high-class Lexus to Century vehicles, back in August last year. The cost of a seven-year lease rose from about 14 million yen to about 21 million yen per car.
Questions were also raised in the prefectural assembly, such as, "Are these official cars appropriate in terms of cost amid the declining tax revenues?"
In response, Hyogo Gov. Toshizo Ido said on Oct. 19, the new car "is a model which is powerful enough to run through the vast land of our prefecture and equipped with high safety performance. Regrettably, discussions have been one-sided."
A Yomiuri Shimbun survey on the types of official vehicles used by all 47 prefectural governments, completed by Oct. 16, found that Aichi, Chiba and Ishikawa prefectures are also using Century vehicles. Four prefectures -- Iwate, Toyama, Shizuoka and Oita -- use Lexus cars that cost about 10 million yen if purchased.
The most popular car type for official vehicle was Toyota's minivan Alphard, which was acquired by 19 prefectures including Tokyo and Osaka. The lease fee is about one-third to one-quarter that of the Century, and the officials of these local governments said they made their decisions based on financial conditions among other factors.
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