Masayoshi Imamura tendered his resignation to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday morning and the prime minister accepted it immediately
The Japanese cabinet minister overseeing reconstruction of areas devastated by the 2011 tsunami and Fukushima nuclear disaster resigned on Wednesday after saying it was better the disaster struck the northeastern region instead of Tokyo. Masahiro Imamura was forced to quit after remarks he made on Tuesday at a party for ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lawmakers and is the latest in a spate of ruling party lawmakers in trouble for their comments or behaviour. Speaking of the costs incurred in the 9.0 earthquake that set off a massive tsunami and left nearly 20,000 dead or missing, Imamura said: “It was better that this happened in the northeast.” “If it had been close to the greater Tokyo area, there would have been vast, enormous damage, ” he said. The disaster left 15,893 people dead, with 2,553 still listed as missing, according to the latest tally by the National Police Agency. Imamura retracted the remark immediately afterward, telling reporters he was sorry for “adding to concern.” The comments came just weeks after Imamura set off a furore at a news conference by disparaging people who left Fukushima out of fear after the world’s worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl, then shouting at a reporter and storming out of the room.
