The word “sontaku” is frequently used these days. Sontaku means to divine another’s unspoken intensions and act accordingly. The media has been speculating about whether Prime Minister ABE Shinzo, or his wife may have been involved in giving the special treatment to the owners of two schools. Prime Minister Abe has completely denied these charges and clearly stated that he would have taken responsibility had he been involved in the case. The government officials suspected of wrongdoing have also denied the charges. Hindering the opposition party’s investigation into the matter, they presented documents that had largely been blacked out, giving the excuse that the relevant documents had already been disposed of. Since the Prime Minister declared that he would take responsibly if he was involved in the case, the government officials seem ever more incapable of giving a clear account of the situation. If an influential person had given direct instructions, he would be judged severely. However, if this is the fault of some government officials, he will not be blamed. Government officials might act according to the dictates of sontaku in order to cement their position or to get promoted by making people feel some kind of obligation towards them. As Japanese people have a tradition of trying to divine the intentions of others without being explicitly told, this may be where the problem sprung from.