Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru's gift voucher scandal continued to dominate the Diet Monday. He maintained the gifts were not a violation of any law.



The scandal stems from a gathering held earlier this month. Ishiba invited 15 lawmakers from the main ruling Liberal Democratic Party to his official residence for a meal. Ishiba's private office sent gift vouchers to their offices. Each was worth about 675 dollars.



The question is whether those gifts run afoul of the political funds control law. It bans individuals from donating things like money or stocks for a politician's political activities. Gift vouchers do fall under that law. But it does not ban donations for non-political activities.



Ishiba claims the dinner in question was not political. He says the vouchers were a kind of souvenir.



Opposition lawmakers continued to grill the prime minister Monday.



Koike Akira, the Japanese Communist Party's secretariat head, said: "If giving advice on policy isn't a 'political activity,' then that means anything could be allowed. This is clearly a violation of the political funds control law."



Ishiba said: "We did not talk about the policies the LDP should promote, or who the party should back to get elected. So this was not a political activity."



Ishigaki Noriko of the largest opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan asked, "How will you, Prime Minister Ishiba, respond to calls for you to take accountability?"



Ishiba said: "Even though it was not wrong in terms of the law, from an ethical and conventional standpoint, some things are not socially acceptable. I think I've been detached from what the general public feels. For that, I'm terribly sorry."



The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan has urged Ishiba to explain himself in Diet deliberations. The CDP said that if it is not satisfied, it may call him before a political ethics panel.