Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida is set to reshuffle his Cabinet and key party posts on Wednesday, September 13, 2023.
His Cabinet was to resign en masse in a ceremonial meeting later on Wednesday before a new lineup is announced in the afternoon.
This would be Kishida’s second Cabinet shuffle since he took office in October 2021.
Kishida last shuffled his Cabinet a year ago. That was after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s assassination revealed ties between senior ruling party members and the Unification Church, a South Korea-based ultra-conservative sect.
According to a preliminary lineup reported by Japanese media, Kishida is expected to distribute Cabinet posts to reflect the balance of power, and nearly half of the positions will be shared between the two largest factions associated with late leader, Shinzo Abe and former leader, Taro Aso.
Kishida is expected to appoint five women in his 19-member Cabinet. Yoko Kamikawa, a former Justice Minister, would be one of the five women.
He currently has two women as Cabinet members and five would match Abe’s 2014 Cabinet and one in 2001 under then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.
Yoko Kamikawa will succeed Yoshimasa Hayashi as Foreign Minister.
Nevertheless, a World Economic Forum report measuring gender parity ranked Japan 125th out of 146 countries in 2023, with a particularly poor showing in political empowerment.
A number of the current members of Kishida’s Cabinet are expected to remain in office.
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister; Yasutoshi Nishimura, Finance Minister; Shunichi Suzuki, Digital Reform Minister; Taro Kono as well as Economic Security Minister; Sanae Takaichi, are among those expected to be retained.
Kishida appointed Suzuki as Finance Minister when he formed his first cabinet in October 2021. Continuity at the finance ministry would underscore his administration’s focus on keeping sharp yen falls in check, and compiling a fresh package of measures to cushion the blow from rising living costs.
Nishimura’s time in charge of Japan’s trade, industry and energy policy has coincided with tense bilateral ties with China following the decision to release treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant into the ocean.
Kishida also kept his main intraparty rival, Toshimitsu Motegi at the No. 2 post in the party and retained faction heavyweights in other key party posts.
Hirokazu Matsuno will remain Chief Cabinet Secretary, a key position that involves being the main government Spokesperson and coordinating policy among Ministries.
Shinzo Abe and Yoshihide Suga, Kishida’s immediate predecessors, both served in the post before becoming Prime Ministers.
Two officials expected to lose their postions in the shakeup had been embroiled in recent scandals.
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister , Tetsuro Nomura called the treated radioactive wastewater being released from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant “contaminated.”
He was reprimanded by Kishida and he apologized.
Additionally, magazine reports have stated allegations that Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, Seiji Kihara influenced a police investigation of his wife over her ex-husband’s suspicious death.
Kishida To Compile New Economic Package
Kishida is expected to compile a new economic package to deal with rising gasoline and food prices, which would be necessary to have wage increase continue and support low-income households in order to regain public support.
When Kishida took office as Japan’s Prime Minister in October 2021, he promised fairer distribution of economic growth, measures to tackle Japan’s declining population and a stronger national defense.
However, Russia’s war in Ukraine, rising energy prices and Japan’s soaring defense costs have created challenges in his tenure, keeping his support ratings at low levels.
Kishida’s three-year term as Liberal Democratic Party(LDP) President expires in September 2024, when he would seek a second term.
His faction is only the fourth largest in the LDP, so he must stay on good terms with the others to maintain his position.
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