Consumption tax in Japan

The government's plan for raising consumption tax to 10% has been discussed over and over again recently. The reason of doing so is because this country is in debt. Some people might concern that If the government don't raise taxes, Japan would probably end up like Greece. I just wonder how the government could have piled up so many debts. If most countries are in debt, where did the money come from?

Personally, I was hoping that the government should cut down the wasteful spending instead of raising consumption tax. (wasteful spending such as constructions that were not necessary but only for the purpose of showing off to other countries...; I'm not sure if this is creditable or not, but I heard this issue from one of my class discussions) I'm worried to face to the rise in consumption tax, but it's inevitable from the point of Japan's current financial situation.

According to this article, it looks like Japan's consumption tax is going to stay at 5% for at least a couple of year, what a relief! Though I'm still interested in what do people think about the issue of raising consumption tax to 10%. Let me know what you think!