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Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, has ended the year facing fierce political headwinds after his reconstruction minister became the fourth member of his scandal-hit cabinet to resign in two months.
Kenya Akiba announced his resignation on Tuesday after opposition MPs accused him of election law violations and of having ties to the Unification church, a controversial religious group whose connections to the ruling party have sent Kishida’s approval ratings to record lows.
“I take my responsibility very seriously as the person who makes appointments,” Kishida told reporters after Akiba had quit. “By rising to my political responsibilities, I hope to be fulfilling my duties as prime minister.”
Kishida effectively ordered Akiba to resign, according to Japanese media reports, in part to prevent the scandal from interfering with upcoming parliamentary debates over a budget bill, which includes a dramatic rise in defence spending that Kishida has argued is essential to counter growing threats to Japan’s security from China and North Korea.
