Scandal-hit agriculture minister Yana announces resignation

Agriculture minister Kazuo Yana announced his resignation Wednesday evening following a series of scandals, dealing a blow to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s administration. 

His sudden exit leaves the prime minister without a key Cabinet ally. It also comes in the midst of parliamentary debate on key legislative items involving the ministry, including a controversial bill to reduce the food consumption tax from 8% to 1% next April for two years that the government is pushing for but that major opposition parties oppose. 

Yana found himself under fire in parliament over remarks he made to supporters in May about cutting road budgets for two Tochigi Prefecture towns whose mayors didn’t back him in the February Lower House election. 

He also faced allegations that he violated the Public Offices Election Law in January by providing free shuttle buses for his supporters at a campaign event.

Yana went on to apologize for his remarks about the road budget cuts and retract them. 

But the scandal turned into a political crisis for Takaichi’s government by threatening to disrupt parliamentary debate on key bills it wants passed before the current session ends on Dec. 12. 

As pressure mounted, Takaichi faced the question of whether to replace Yana before debate shifts to the Upper House on Friday, where the opposition holds the majority of seats.

That question assumed more urgency after the opposition parties in the upper chamber of parliament agreed Wednesday afternoon to submit a censure motion against the agriculture minister. While not legally binding, it would greatly complicate the government’s efforts to win the opposition votes it needs to pass bills.

On the same day, the prime minister told the Lower House budget committee that she had spoken with Yana over the phone on Tuesday evening about the issue, which was raised in the same committee earlier in the day. 

Yana faced allegations he may have broken the Public Offices Election Law by providing free shuttle buses to his supporters at the January launch of his campaign for a seat in February’s Lower House election. 

But Takaichi hedged on whether Yana’s action was illegal.

“Whether or not this case violates the Public Offices Election Law is a decision that must be made by the relevant authorities based on the specific facts of each case. At this point, I cannot answer,” Takaichi told the Lower House budget committee Wednesday morning.

But despite signs that Takaichi’s support for him was wavering, Yana told the committee on the same day of his intentions to carry on.

“Having been appointed by the prime minister, I intend to fully fulfill my responsibilities in order to steadily advance agricultural, forestry and fisheries policies, as well as ensuring food security,” he had said.

On Tuesday, Yana told the budget committee that his staff had inquired with the Tochigi prefectural election commission beforehand regarding the provision of shuttle buses to his supporters and had received confirmation that there were no legal issues. 

But on Wednesday, Yana altered his explanation, saying that, after reconfirming with his secretary, he received a report that his staff might have inquired not about the legality of the move but about the method of accounting in the political funds income and expenditure report.

He added that there is no record of the actual response given to his staff’s inquiry. 

Yana’s actions prompted criticism from both opposition and ruling party members. 

Speaking to reporters on Oct. 11, former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said that as agriculture minister, Yana’s responsibility was to fully address issues related to the ministry.

“If that’s not being done adequately, it’s up to Yana himself to consider the situation,” Ishiba said.

Former transport minister Seiji Maehara, a senior member of the Japan Innovation Party, a partner of the Liberal Democratic Party in the ruling coalition, described Yana as being unfit to be a politician.

“He deserves to resign from his position as a member of parliament, not just his ministerial post,” Maehara told reporters on Oct. 7.