Full disclosure] I knew it! Exclusive Photos of Prime Minister Kishida’s “Happy Participation” in the Year-End Party at his Official Residence where his “son is having a big party”!

On December 30 last year, 18 relatives gathered at the “grand year-end party” held at the prime minister’s official residence in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo. At the center of the gathering, smiling, was Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (65), dressed in his nightgown of sweatshirt, down vest, and bare feet.

When the Shukan Bunshun (weekly magazine) reported that the prime minister’s relatives, including his eldest son and secretary to the prime minister, Shotaro (32), had a big party, lying down on the steps of the official residence, the public was outraged. The prime minister, however, merely stated that he had given Shoutarou a “stern warning. Even though the opposition parties, as well as the media at home and abroad, slammed him for being “soft on his own people,” the prime minister did not budge. In fact, at a May 26 meeting of the Budget Committee of the House of Councillors, he even appeared to defend his son, saying, “I also appeared at meals in his private living space and greeted him.

This group photo is the true nature of the “discomfort” he felt. The prime minister himself, along with his wife Yuko (58), Shotaro, and others, were in the “commemorative photo,” looking very pleased with themselves.

On the day of the party, the four members of the Kishida family, including Takeo, 62, the prime minister’s brother and a businessman, and their spouses and children, gathered for a year-end party. No outsiders were allowed in, and it was truly a ‘family’ party,” said one of the prime minister’s acquaintances.

On May 29, the prime minister made a hasty announcement that Shoutarou would be replaced as of June 1. According to polls conducted by Nikkei and TV TOKYO after the year-end party issue was reported, the approval rating of the Cabinet dropped by 5 points from the previous survey.

The poll showed that the prime minister has no allies among his cunning political rivals, including former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, 74, with whom he can confide his feelings. That is why Shoutarou’s problems were not blamed even though they were frequently discussed. This time, too, the prime minister thought he could make it go away by delaying the issue, but it has affected his approval rating. Prime Minister Kishida is concerned not with policy but with approval ratings, and with the July election in mind, he has come to the conclusion that he wants to eliminate any ‘cause for concern’ even if it is his beloved son.

The maintenance of the prime minister’s official residence is reportedly paid for with about 160 million yen a year in public funds. Journalist Tetsuo Suzuki said.

The residence is within easy reach of the prime minister’s official residence in the event of an emergency, and cabinet meetings and prime ministerial press conferences are held there. It is not ‘just a house,’ but the center of crisis management in Japan. It is definitely not a place to hold a year-end party for one’s family. Furthermore, it is too late to fire Shoutarou after realizing that it would affect his approval rating. It is not only a matter of Shoutarou’s awareness, but also of the prime minister’s crisis management skills.

When we asked Kishida’s office about the year-end party at his official residence, the response was as follows.

I have already explained your question to the Diet and in hanging interviews.

The public will not be satisfied if he just fires his son and that’s it. The public will not be satisfied if the firing of his son is the end of it.

From the June 16-23, 2023 issue of FRIDAY