Japan Assembly Member Quits Over Claims About Ex - Lawmaker's Religious Group Ties
A member of the Fukuoka City assembly in southwestern Japan says she is resigning after she was questioned by police for giving out handbills that claim to have been written by a former Diet member.
The bills allege ties between the former lawmaker and the former Unification Church.
Horimoto Wakako, who belongs to the Nippon Ishin Japan Innovation Party, told NHK that she was questioned by police on a voluntary basis after distributing the handbills in Fukuoka City in August.
The handbills say that he delivered a congratulatory speech at a ceremony held by the former Unification Church. They also say that he expressed his support at the event for an idea to construct an undersea tunnel connecting Japan and South Korea.
Horimoto denied that she pretended to be the former lawmaker. She said she wanted voters to know that he gave a speech at a ceremony of the former Unification Church.
She said her conduct has caused trouble for many people and that she wants to take responsibility.
She said she intends to leave the Japan Innovation Party and she is also resigning as a member of the city assembly.
The former lawmaker said he gave a speech at a ceremony of the former Unification Church three years ago, but he no longer has any contacts with the religious group. He said Horimoto's conduct was "malicious."
Horimoto won her seat in the Fukuoka City assembly in 2019 by defeating the former lawmaker by a slim margin.