TOKYO: On Thursday, four cabinet ministers in Japan resigned amidst a fundraising scandal tied to the ruling party’s dominant faction, purportedly channeling over 500 million yen (£2.8m; $3.4m) into undisclosed funds between 2017 and 2022.
Tokyo prosecutors have initiated an inquiry into corruption, as reported by Nikkei. This development marks a significant setback for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government, which has seen a drastic decline in public approval due to various issues. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s support, dominant in Japanese politics for decades, plummeted below 30%, a situation unseen since 2012 according to an NHK survey released on Tuesday.
The dissatisfaction among voters stems from rising inflation and Kishida’s perceived mishandling of prior controversies. Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, a key figure in Kishida’s administration, along with Economy and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, Internal Affairs Minister Junji Suzuki, and Agriculture Minister Ichiro Miyashita, resigned on Thursday. Their replacements are expected to be announced soon.
Furthermore, a group of senior vice ministers and a parliamentary vice minister, affiliated with the faction formerly led by the late PM Shinzo Abe, also stepped down. This exodus has left the LDP without representation from its most influential faction in the cabinet.
Kishida, in office since October 2021, vowed to confront the allegations directly. The accusations involve the alleged concealment of significant fundraising income by the Seiwa policy group, with reports suggesting that excess revenue was redirected off the records into undisclosed funds. While the practice of distributing additional funds to members beyond set quotas for party event ticket sales isn’t against Japanese law, the issue arises from the alleged diversion of this surplus into undisclosed reserves.
Matsuno himself faces allegations of failing to report substantial income, adding to the cloud of suspicion hovering over the LDP. Despite the opposition’s no-confidence motion being rejected by the Lower House of Japan’s Diet, the ongoing scandal is poised to significantly damage Kishida’s credibility. Even as he navigates the leadership elections within the LDP slated for next September and the scheduled general election in 2025, observers anticipate a notable dent in Kishida’s authority due to the enduring fallout from the scandal.
“Kishida will remain in power for now as there are no obvious other candidates for the next president. But if a strong contender emerges, there may be a move to drop Kishida,” Yu Uchiyama, a professor of political science at the University of Tokyo, told Reuters this week.
