Ikuta defends postal savings, life insurance
Japan Post President Masaharu Ikuta said on Jan. 21 that the regional post office network cannot be maintained if the postal savings and postal life insurance operations are eliminated.
The comments, made during a news conference, came in response to attacks by the Japanese Bankers Association and others who say the government-backed postal entity must reduce or terminate such services.
“Eighty percent of specially designated post offices, which are common in rural areas, do not handle mail, and therefore rely on the postal savings and postal life insurance operations,” Ikuta said.
He added that the nation’s post office network, consisting of 24,700 branches, would be unsustainable if both services were eliminated.
The Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy will resume debate on privatization of postal operations in the near future. While financial institutions are among those seeking a reduced role for public financial entities, Liberal Democratic Party legislators with vested interests in the existing postal system adamantly oppose elimination of the two services.
As for the debate concerning privatization of the three postal operations, including mail service, Ikuta asked that consideration be given toward maintaining their ease of use.
