TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is set to replace an unpopular long-term ally as he seeks to shore up support ahead of a party leadership election he must win before the general election planned for October, media said on Tuesday.
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Secretary-General Toshihiro Nikai told Suga he would step down at a meeting on Monday, the reports said.
“I’ve been in the Secretary General post for more than five years, I want you to do the reshuffle without hesitation,” Nikai told Suga, according to the public broadcaster NHK.
Nikai was instrumental in helping Suga become prime minister last year and was also the first among LDP faction chiefs to throw his group’s support behind the premier in this year’s contest.
But some parliamentarians have voiced their unease with the amount of power wielded by Nikai, 82, who has held the key LDP post, with control over campaign funds, since August 2016 – the longest in the party’s history.
Suga’s rival for the party leader, former foreign minister Fumio Kishida, sparked ire from Nikai after he proposed limits on executive posts and promised to promote young and middle-level lawmakers over heavyweights last week.
The proposal was seen as Kishida’s bid to attract grassroots LDP members who, unlike last year, will vote along with members of parliament and who, fearful of losing their seats, may be wary of following their elders’ orders.
The reshuffle of the party executive, including Nikai, was set to take place next week, Kyodo news agency reported. Suga will instruct his party and government to craft economic stimulus measures and an extra budget to help fund them within the week, Kyodo reported, citing an unnamed senior ruling party official.
