Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida replaced four of his cabinet ministers on Thursday, in a bid to contain the fallout from a kickbacks scandal that has rocked his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
The scandal involves dozens of LDP lawmakers, mostly from the faction of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who allegedly received unreported funds from party fundraising events. The funds are suspected to have been used as slush money or kickbacks for the lawmakers.
The four ministers who resigned were Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, Economy and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, Agriculture Minister Ichiro Miyashita, and Internal Affairs Minister Junji Suzuki. All of them belonged to the Abe faction and were implicated in the scandal.
Kishida appointed former Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, a member of his own faction, as the new chief cabinet secretary. He also named Ken Saito as the new economy minister, Takeaki Matsumoto as the new internal affairs minister, and Tetsushi Sakamoto as the new agriculture minister.
Kishida said he decided to reshuffle his cabinet to restore public trust in his administration and to tackle the challenges facing the country, such as inflation, the coronavirus pandemic, and diplomatic issues.
“I will make efforts like a ball of fire and lead the LDP to restore the public’s trust,” he told reporters.
However, analysts said the cabinet reshuffle may not be enough to boost Kishida’s popularity, which has plummeted to record lows since he took office in October. They said Kishida faces a tough battle to maintain his grip on power within the LDP, which is divided into factions and rife with rivalries.
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Some of Kishida’s potential challengers, such as former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Taro Kono, have already expressed their dissatisfaction with Kishida’s handling of the scandal and his economic policies.
“Kishida is in a very precarious position. He has to deal with the scandal, the inflation, the pandemic, and the external pressures from China and the US. He also has to fend off the attacks from his rivals within the LDP, who are moving against him,” said Koichi Nakano, a political science professor at Sophia University in Tokyo.
Nakano said Kishida may survive until the next general election, which is due by October 2025, but he may face a challenge in the LDP leadership election, which is scheduled for September 2024.
“He may be able to hang on, but he will be a lame duck. He will not have much authority or influence, and he will not be able to implement his agenda,” Nakano said.
