Kishida Dismisses Internal Affairs Minister
Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has dismissed a Cabinet minister who allegedly reported political funding details inaccurately.
Kishida summoned internal affairs minister Terada Minoru to the prime minister's office on Sunday evening and dismissed him by having him submit his resignation.
The minister had come under scrutiny after it was revealed that a group related to his political funding had listed a dead person as its accountant.
Kishida told reporters on Saturday that he would decide soon on whether to dismiss Terada now that his administration must concentrate all of its energy on a number of challenging issues.
He also stressed that Cabinet ministers must fulfill their accountabilities.
Kishida is also making adjustments quickly to select an official to replace Terada.
Opposition parties had been calling on Kishida to replace Terada, saying he was unfit to lead the internal affairs ministry, which oversees the political funds control law.
Even within Kishida's own Liberal Democratic Party, some were saying that Terada's explanation of the issue has been insufficient. Some expressed the view that his resignation would be unavoidable.
Terada was serving his sixth term as a Lower House lawmaker from Hiroshima. A member of a faction led by Kishida, he was appointed Cabinet minister for the first time at the reshuffle this summer.
Terada is known for being close to Kishida.
Late former prime minister Ikeda Hayato, who had formed a political group preceding Kishida's, was the grandfather of Terada's wife.
The resignation of a third minister under the Kishida Cabinet in the space of one month is expected to deal a heavy blow to him and his cabinet.