Confidence in Japanese politics at historic lows after the wave of ministerial resignations

• Anoma van der Veere

  Correspondent Japan

In less than a month, three ministers in Japan have been forced out of the cabinet. “Yesterday I received Minister Takeda’s resignation. I apologize, Minister Terada,” stammered Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during a speech in parliament. It was the second time the prime minister had mispronounced his cabinet member’s name, and it was unwelcome: Kishida was booed.

The debacle symbolizes the convulsions of a government that is crumbling step by step. The media speak of a ‘dismissal domino’: ministers fall like cubes one after another. Also, cabinet support has plummeted, while it was still very popular earlier this year. The lawsuit can be traced to a series of scandals afflicting Kishida’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

In July, former Prime Minister Abe was killed in broad daylight I shoot during an election speech. The shooter wanted revenge because his mother was forced to donate hundreds of thousands of euros to the Church Association, a sect accused of extorting followers. According to the shooter, the former prime minister had ties to the organization.

When it was discovered that this was true, and that almost half of the LDP MPs had connections with the sect, the dam broke. Public anger was suddenly no longer directed against the shooter, but against the LDP. The cabinet’s popularity plummeted and has not recovered since.

Less than a month ago, rumors surfaced that Economic Renewal Minister Yamagiwa also had ties to the Unification Church. He denied it until evidence surfaced in the media that he had met the cult leader. It was the second major blow to Kishida’s already unstable cabinet.

But one scandal was still afoot when the next erupted. Justice Minister Hanashi has jokingly stated in public that his job was simply to sign execution orders for death row inmates. The prank didn’t go well and a few days later Hanashi was on the street.

Now Interior Secretary Terada has also resigned. He is said to have cheated campaign funds and passed money to city councilors in his district. His position became untenable, in part because in his position she was primarily responsible for controlling the financing of political parties.

Kishida, meanwhile, is considered indecisive. If he makes a decision, it’s often seen as the wrong one. To the dissatisfaction of the population, when all three ministers were sacked, it took Kishida days or even weeks to take the plunge. He had doubts because the deceased cabinet members belonged to his own faction, Terada in particular had been his mainstay for many years. With his departure, the prime minister loses political influence both inside and outside the party.

Experts point out that if Kishida does not regain popularity before the next elections in April, his position could suffer. The party is currently considering overturning the entire cabinet. But there is a lack of party members who can replace the current ones: many have ties to the Unification Church, others still have too little experience.

And finally, the next scandal is already in the pipeline: according to the newspaper Hokkaido Shimbun Kenya’s reconstruction minister rented his office from his wife and mother for thousands of euros. Opposition members accuse him of misappropriating campaign funds.

The LDP has lost the confidence of the voters. Only one in three Japanese say they still support the government and nearly half want the cabinet out before the end of the year.