Japan Faces Domino Effect with Three Cabinet Resignations in a Month... Inevitable Blow to Kishida Cabinet

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has finally dismissed Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Minoru Terada amid mounting resignation pressure from opposition parties over political funding issues. With three cabinet members stepping down in just one month, a 'resignation domino' has become a reality, dealing a significant blow to the Kishida administration.

According to NHK and other sources on the 21st, Prime Minister Kishida held a meeting with senior government officials the previous day, solidified the decision to dismiss Minister Terada, and subsequently accepted his resignation.

Afterwards, Kishida told reporters that he decided to dismiss Minister Terada at a very critical time with important tasks ahead, including the review of the second supplementary budget, relief for victims of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly the Unification Church), strengthening defense capabilities, and COVID-19 measures. Regarding the successive resignations of cabinet members, he expressed "deep apologies" and emphasized, "I take full responsibility for the appointments. I will seriously accept the criticism and proceed with government operations."

Minister Terada, who was dismissed this time, belongs to the 'Kochikai' faction of the Liberal Democratic Party led by Kishida and shares the same Hiroshima Prefecture electoral district as the Prime Minister. He was first appointed to the cabinet as Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications during the cabinet reshuffle in August, having previously served as a prime ministerial aide. He faced criticism for listing a deceased person as the accounting manager in his electoral support group's political funding report over approximately three years, and his position weakened as multiple political funding-related allegations surfaced subsequently.

Kishida stated, "The successor to Minister Terada will be announced on the morning of the 21st," but Kyodo News and local public broadcaster NHK reported that Kishida has decided to appoint former Foreign Minister Takeaki Matsumoto as the new Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications.

With Minister Terada's resignation, three cabinet members have stepped down in one month, delivering a heavy blow to the Kishida Cabinet. Previously, on the 24th of last month, former Minister in charge of Economic Revitalization Daishiro Yamagawa was dismissed amid allegations of ties with the former Unification Church, followed by former Justice Minister Yasuhiro Hanashi on the 11th, who faced criticism for describing his duties as "stamping death warrants."

In particular, Kishida has been criticized for showing a lukewarm attitude during the dismissal process of these ministers and making decisions belatedly as public criticism intensified. Consequently, local opinion polls show the Kishida Cabinet's approval rating remains at a low level in the 30% range due to controversies such as the Liberal Democratic Party's ties with the former Unification Church.

Kyodo News analyzed, "As allegations against Minister Terada continued to surface, calls for his resignation emerged not only from opposition parties but also from within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party," adding, "The Prime Minister's crisis management ability, which he claimed was his strength in listening, has come into question." It further pointed out, "Although political funding issues concerning Minister Terada arose from October, the Prime Minister only demanded thorough explanations regarding the allegations and did not take the initiative to resolve the situation promptly."

The Asahi Shimbun reported, "There is no denying the decline in Prime Minister Kishida's centripetal force," and added, "Government operations are becoming increasingly chaotic."