Tokyo: Local authorities in over a dozen
prefectures in Japan have lost track of 33 centenarians
registered in their jurisdictions, their officials have said.
Municipalities across the country, moved to account
for centenarians, from Hokkaido to Fukuoka have not been able
to locate them shedding more light on problems in public
welfare services for the elderly in a nation known for its
longevity.
The move was prompted by the discovery last week of a
mummified body thought to be of Tokyo`s oldest man at age 111
and the subsequent failure by a ward office to locate a woman
thought to be the oldest person in the capital at age 113.
Tokyo police yesterday ordered their 102 stations to
seek aid from other stations across the country in tracking
down missing centenarians in their jurisdictions if they
believe the elderly are likely to have been involved in
incidents or some sorts of crimes.
Health, Labour and Welfare Minister Akira Nagatsuma,
meanwhile, plans to launch investigations soon into the
whereabouts of pension recipients who would be 110 or older
across Japan and to announce the results by the end of
this month.
In the case of Fusa Furuya, the purported oldest woman
in Tokyo, the metropolitan government has wired money to her
account as benefits for a bereaved family for about half a
century since the death of her husband, a former metro
government employee, officials said yesterday.
Police will look into whether the money has been
withdrawn, given that the money may have totaled tens of
millions of yen by now, police officials said.
PTI
