TOKYO, Japan: In a blow to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Japan’s economic revitalisation minister Daishiro Yamagiwa resigned this week after failing to fully explain his ties to the Unification Church, which critics have said is a cult.
Yamagiwa is the first and highest profile official to resign from Kishida’s government since he took power last year, after a widening scandal sparked by the July killing of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
After revelations were made about connections between nearly half of the lawmakers of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the Unification Church, support for Kishida has plunged to record lows.
“It was pointed out that my explanation was delayed. As a result, I caused inconvenience to the government,” Yamagiwa told reporters, adding that he regretted attending church gatherings.
“I accepted his resignation because, as prime minister, I need to give top priority to issues such as economic measures and supplementary budgets,” Kited said.
He added that an economic stimulus package was in the final stages of compilation and would be announced by the end of the month.
However, the opposition may not be appeased by the move.
In a tweet, Kenta Izumi, who leads the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party, said, “They even cancelled the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy meeting abruptly. It is total mayhem.”
Founded in South Korea in 1954 by self-declared messiah Sun Myung Moon and famous for its mass weddings, the Unification Church, often often derided as the “Moonies,” has came under the spotlight following Abe’s assassination.
According to his social media posts and news reports, Abe’s alleged killer bore a grudge against the church, claiming it bankrupted his mother and blaming Abe for promoting it.
Since the killing, evidence has come to light of deep and longstanding ties between the church and Liberal Democratic Party members.
Last week, Kishida ordered an investigation into the church, but the Liberal Democratic Party has admitted that many individual lawmakers have ties to the church but stressed there was, no organizational link to the party.