Exit of third minister piles the pressure on Japan PM Kishida

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday appointed Takeaki Matsumoto as Japan's new internal affairs minister to replace Minoru Terada, who resigned following a string of funding-related scandals.

As the third cabinet member to resign in less than a month, Terada's forced resignation raised widespread doubts over Kishida's leadership abilities, as well as questions about his political future with his approval rating slipping below 30 percent.

A key Kishida ally and member of his political faction inside the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Terada stepped down on Sunday after a series of scandals involving his political funds were exposed by the weekly Shukan Bunshun magazine last month.

Terada had come under scrutiny because his support group related to political funding had listed a dead person as its accountant and is accused of renting an office partially owned by his wife to "recycle" political funds to his family.

Although Terada insisted that there was no fraudulent activity on his part, he had refused to divulge his wife's tax returns and his political fund reports were found flawed.

As a result, Kishida summoned Terada to his office on Sunday evening and had him submit his resignation.

Kishida then apologized for having yet another cabinet member exit during the current parliament session due to a scandal.

"Terada expressed his intention to resign because he did not want to be adversely affected by continued questions about his political funds at a time when he was in the final stages of dealing with important issues such as the supplementary budget bill and the new law for victims' relief," Kishida told reporters on Sunday evening, referring to an economic stimulus plan and a draft bill to help spouses or children of religious group followers who have made or were forced to make excessive donations.

Kishida had already been forced to replace economic revitalization minister Daishiro Yamagiwa, who resigned last month over his ties to the Unification Church. Then earlier this month, former justice minister Yasuhiro Hanashi was also forced to resign over remarks on the death penalty.

The cabinet changes came at a time when Kishida aims to push a 29 trillion yen ($206 billion) spending plan. Debate on the plan was supposed to begin in the lower house budget committee on Thursday, but opposition parties now demand that the prime minister explain Terada's resignation in parliament, meaning budget deliberations may be postponed as a result.

A Jiji Press poll conducted between Nov 11 and 14 showed that the approval rate for Kishida's cabinet was just 27.7 percent, with 43.5 percent of respondents saying they did not support his administration.

"Given his (Terada) various scandals, Sunday's resignation came too late," said Kenta Izumi, head of the Constitutional Democratic Party, in a statement.

"The fact that three ministers have resigned since the August cabinet reshuffle calls into question the prime minister's ability to manage his personnel affairs."

WANG XU in Tokyo

wangxu@chinadaily.com.cn