Kishida Staggered by Cabinet 'Resignation Domino'... 43% of Japanese Public Want Him to Resign Quickly (Summary)

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
Photo by Reuters

[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. A survey revealed that 4 out of 10 Japanese citizens believe Prime Minister Kishida should resign quickly.

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

Later, 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 criticism and continue to manage the administration."

Minister Terada, who was dismissed this time, belongs to the 'Kochikai' faction of the Liberal Democratic Party led by Prime Minister 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 about three years, and his position weakened as multiple political funding-related allegations surfaced.

Prime Minister 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, dealing a significant blow to the Kishida Cabinet. Previously, on the 24th of last month, former Minister for Economic Revitalization Daishiro Yamagiwa resigned amid allegations of ties with the former Unification Church, followed by former Justice Minister Yasuhiro Hanashi's dismissal on the 11th after he described his job as "stamping death warrants," which drew criticism.

In particular, Prime Minister Kishida has been criticized for showing a lukewarm attitude during the dismissal process of these ministers and making decisions belatedly amid mounting public criticism. Consequently, local opinion polls show the Kishida Cabinet's approval rating remains at a low 20-30% 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 related to 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 "administration management is becoming increasingly chaotic."

As the situation worsens, a survey found that 4 out of 10 Japanese citizens hope for Prime Minister Kishida to resign quickly. According to a telephone opinion poll conducted by Mainichi Shimbun on the 19th and 20th targeting 1,066 voters aged 18 and over nationwide (valid respondents), 43% answered that they want Prime Minister Kishida to resign soon when asked, "Until when do you want Prime Minister Kishida to continue as Prime Minister?" In response to the same question, 31% said "until the end of the LDP presidency term in September next year," and only 14% said "to continue as long as possible."

However, the Kishida Cabinet's approval rating rose by 4 percentage points to 31% compared to Mainichi Shimbun's poll conducted on the 22nd and 23rd of last month.