Former Abe Cabinet members had an overnight affair on the “Good Marriage Day”.
In April 2009, “Shukan Gendai” published an article titled “LDP Elite Delegate’s Onsen Gorgeous Outing: ‘HARENCHI PHOTOS'” and revealed some of his haunting photos taken at Arima Onsen. Furthermore, in 2018, when he was in office as a minister, “Shukan Bunshun” reported on Fukui’s female problems and affairs in rapid succession.
Although he is no longer a member of the Diet, Mr. Fukui is often seen in Nagata-cho visiting Mr. Toshihiro Nikai, a powerful figure in the LDP. Furthermore, next February, a mayoral election will be held in Kitakyushu, and one of the candidates, Kazuhisa Takeuchi, is Fukui’s daughter-in-law. Did it not occur to him that if his father-in-law’s adulterous dating affair came to light, it would affect the outcome of the election in no small measure?
When we visited Mr. Fukui at home to talk to him himself, his wife came out first.
–Unbeknownst to his wife, he had a date with Mr. Matsubara, the president of a construction-related company in Okayama, on a beach and stayed overnight at the same inn. ……
Is he married? How old is he? Hee, (tears in his eyes) I understand. （I’ll let him know. I understand your story.”
–I am sorry, even though it was not your wife’s fault.
I am old and have been through a lot. I don’t think anyone can beat me.
— “I am a former minister, and my son-in-law (Mr. Kazuhisa Takeuchi) is also planning to run for mayor of Kitakyushu, so I can’t say he is a private person. ……
“I didn’t ask my daughter-in-law (running for mayor of Kitakyushu) from the beginning, and ……. （I did ask him to run for (Fukuoka Prefecture) governor (which he ran for in 2019). …… Please don’t attach me to that.”
–November 22 is Good Marriage Day, isn’t it?
I’m sorry, it’s not a good married couple.”
–I’m sorry, we’re not a good married couple.
The past is the past, isn’t it? I had a hard time before when a lot of things were written about me using a composite photo. Isn’t it against the law to have something false written about you?”
At the urging of his wife, Mr. Fukui responded to the interview by telephone.
–You are saying that you held hands, but it was not a relationship between a man and a woman?
Mr. Fukui replied, “That’s right. We are elderly people now, yes.
–You stayed overnight, didn’t you?
We were in separate places in a large room. As you can see, the bedrooms are far apart.
–And you held hands?
Well (chuckles), I think it was the atmosphere that made them do it. Even for the elderly.”
–By the way, November 22nd, the day I met Mr. Matsubara, was “Good Marriage Day. ……
Well, I guess a good day for a business trip is a good day for a married couple,” he said. Well, I’m talking about the probability that the day of my business trip coincided with Good Marriage Day.
–The mayor election in Kitakyushu, who is not his son-in-law, got the endorsement of the Liberal Democratic Party. What is the connection?
“It’s not related. That’s zero. Not at all.
The day after our direct interview with Mr. Fukui, Mr. Matsubara took the trouble to call this magazine’s reporter. He clearly denied any male-female relationship and said , “I had prepared materials for you to consider the problems the company was facing and brought my laptop computer, and I was receiving advice from Advisor Fukui there.
However, as for walking along the beach holding hands, he said, “I was having too much fun. I am sorry. It was an extension of our friendship and does not indicate a special relationship,” he said in his defense.
If Mr. Fukui had been asked to consult on work that could not be done at the company and had chosen a lodging house overlooking the beach as the location, it would not be surprising if Mr. Fukui had a word or two in support of Mr. Matsubara, but unfortunately, we cannot sense such “manliness” in his words. Unfortunately, however, there is no sense of “manliness” in Mr. Fukui’s words. Is it too much to ask for “dignity” from a man who has served at the forefront of protecting the nation as a minister?
