The Daily Manila Shimbun

 

Abe admits flip-flopped response to scandal involving friend-led group

June 20, 2017

Tokyo- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Monday he accepts that the government's flip-flopped explanations about a scandal involving Kake Educational Institution, headed by a personal friend of his, has created public distrust in the government. "We should honestly reflect on" the response to the scandal, Abe told a press conference following the end on Sunday of this year's 150-day ordinary session of the Diet, the country's parliament. "We can't serve without public trust."

Abe expressed his intention to consider reshuffling his cabinet and the leadership team of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party before an extraordinary Diet session expected to be convened as early as September.
In the Kake scandal, Abe faces allegations that he may have exercised influence for the group's plan to launch the country's first university department of veterinary medicine in over half a century, in a special national strategic zone featuring deregulation.
But during the news conference, Abe insisted that the deregulation plan is aimed at "correcting an administrative distortion," in an apparent counterargument against former vice education minister Kihei Maekawa's claim that the ministry's business was distorted over the plan.
The government has "not necessarily gained public understanding" for its explanations about the matter, Abe admitted. "Regardless of whether the Diet is in session or not, we'll continue efforts to give clear explanations," he said.
On the possible cabinet and LDP leadership reshuffles, Abe said he intends to promote key policies including his "Abenomics" economic agenda.
With recent media opinion polls pointing to falls in his cabinet's approval ratings, Abe also seems to be eager to distract public attention from the Kake scandal and the enactment last week of a controversial bill to criminalize preparation to commit acts of terrorism and other serious offenses through a revision of the law punishing organized crimes.
At the press conference, Abe pledged to implement the revised law in an appropriate manner based on Diet deliberations.
On his plan to put a revised constitution of the country into force in 2020, Abe said that now is not the time to speak about when the Diet should make a proposal on a constitutional revision, stressing the need for constructive discussions between ruling and opposition parties. (Jiji Press)

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