[WATCH] A 47-Year-Old Japanese Politician Freaks Out And Starts Sobbing Hysterically
Ryutaro Nonomura wails and bangs fists on desk as he tries to explain his profligate use of public funds.
By Sadho Ram — 03 Jul 2014, 06:55 PM — Updated over 10 years ago
A Japanese politician, while holding a press conference after being accused of dubious spending of government funds, freaked out and burst into tears
A 47-year-old provincial politician was rapidly becoming an internet phenomenon in Japan on Wednesday after crying as he tried to explain his profligate use of public funds. Television chatshows carried looped footage of a press conference in which Ryutaro Nonomura wails and bangs his fists on the desk as tears stream down his face.
theguardian.com
The video of Ryutaro Nonomura crying has gone viral on the Internet, leaving many outraged and puzzled. The video is full of him shouting incoherent excuses in between gut-wrenching sobs.
The video shows Ryutaro Nonomura, 47, a Hyogo Prefectural assemblyman, bursting into tears, uttering nonsensical phrases and banging on the desk.
telegraph.co.uk"I ran for office ... to change the world, and so I gave everything I had to appeal to the public", said Mr Nonomura between his sobs
"I finally became an assembly member… with the sole purpose of changing society… This Japan… I want to change this society… I have staked my life… Don't you understand?" he shouted while wailing.
rt.comAt one point, he becomes so overwhelmed he resorted to banging his fists on the table repeatedly, before regaining his composure by sipping on a glass of water
Nonomura, who was elected to the assembly in Hyogo in western Japan in 2011, is suspected of misusing ¥3m (£17,000) of official allowances. According to media reports, he spent the money on 195 trips he made to four locations in one year, including 106 visits to the same hot spring resort, all without producing a receipt or a report.
However, social media users were merciless in their response
"Is he alright as a member of society, let alone a member of an assembly?" asked Twitter user @nagatokimura
theguardian.com
"There was a kid like that when I was in elementary school. A kid who tried to explain by crying like that. lol," wrote @chiko86
telegraph.co.uk