Nepotism and Japan’s political dynasties

Pyeongtaek, South Korea – First it was the Unification Church scandal; then there was the controversy surrounding the state funeral for Shinzo Abe. As if Prime Minister Fumio Kishida didn’t have sufficient sapping his political capital, we will now add nepotism to the record.

Final week, Kishida appointed his eldest son, Shotaro, as an govt secretary within the Prime Minister’s Workplace. Naturally, this prompted backlash as opposition events decried the plain preferential remedy. When questioned about it in parliament, Kishida dismissed the claims of nepotism, contending that the appointment was based mostly on making certain the best particular person was in the best job. Clearly that argument is falling on deaf ears, and it’ll seemingly contribute to Kishida’s ongoing woes.