Philanthropy

Never look a gift horse in the mouth, right? After all, here is a billionaire, Japanese real estate magnate Genshiro Kawamoto who has generously determined that he would take it upon himself to ease life for a few fortunate families. Mr. Kawamoto is one of the wealthiest men in Japan. He owns dozens of office buildings in Tokyo and he buys and sells real estate in Hawaii and California.

In the past he has been described as a heartless businessman; in expanding and enriching his business he has trampled on the perceived rights of those who rent properties from him, giving them scant notice to find alternate places of residence in his haste to sell off previously rented properties while the market was in a heated selling mode.

That was then; this is now. Native Hawaiians, it would appear, much like aboriginal peoples everywhere, are among the most disadvantaged economically in their society, being over-represented among the state's homeless and working poor. Now, Mr. Kawamoto has seen fit to exercise the prerogative of the rich; he is willing to give away some of his hard-earned money to the deserving poor.

Mr. Kawamoto selected eight low-income families from among three thousand who made application last fall once he announced his plan to open eight of his 22 properties in Kahala to needy Hawaiian families. In making his selection, Mr. Kawamoto deliberately picked working, single mothers. Who could fault such a generous impulse?

Well, I most certainly can, will, and do. For one thing, these are mansions, not mere houses. For another the keys to these mansions will be handed over to these fortunate few for up to 10 years. Each family so gifted will be responsible to pay their own utility bills. He further gave each family a $1-thousand donation to cover moving-in fees. My initial admiration for Mr. Kawamoto has somewhat dimmed.

The mansions have been described as white, columned houses, with circular driveways, stone staircases, deep porcelain bathtubs. Each of these mansion-sized houses is worth roughly five million dollars. Yet these five million dollar mansions represent the more modest homes in the neighbourhood, most of which stand on prime acreage with ornate iron gates, long driveways and sculpted gardens.

Why would low income families need mansion-sized homes to house their families? Why would low income families undertake to pay the outsized utility bills normally associated with the living maintenance of mansions? Why is it such a wonderful thing to offer low income families ten years of rent-free living in mansions, then revoke the offer and leave them to their own sad future devices?

He is offering an unlikely and temporary reprieve, not a solution. The funds involved would be far better invested in planning a larger-scale venture that would benefit far more families were he to build low-cost housing in a more modest neighbourhood, then hand over the ownership in perpetuity to candidates of his choosing. That would represent a far greater living bonus to families of low income than a temporary feel-good solution.

Mr. Kawamoto is quoted as having said that giving away mansions shows more dedication to helping the state's homeless than just handing out wads of cash. Asked whether he was concerned about losing money, he laughed and responded "This is pocket money for me." That being the case he should put his money where his mouth is and re-design his philanthropic plans to reflect true altruistic philanthropy.

Sell the bloody mansions. With the profits build reasonably modest homes adequate to the needs of low income families who will then be able to afford to maintain them. It would represent a very realistic approach, and a true measure of the man's spirit of generosity.