Kako’s “Blitz Marriage” Accelerated by Reports of Her Living Alone

There had been a string of reports that Kako was the only member of the family who had not moved into Akishino’s residence, which had just undergone extensive renovations. “The head of the department in charge of the Akishino family (Imperial Household Journalist) admitted that Princess Kako had not moved into the residence.

The Akishino Palace, located on the Akasaka Imperial Palace grounds in Minato Ward, Tokyo, began major renovations in March 2020, following a significant increase in the number of staff since HIH Princess Akishino became the Imperial Heir. The family has been living in a temporary residence until the completion of construction.

The original plan was to have a room for each of the five members of the family, including Mako before her marriage, but in order to save costs, it was decided not to provide a private room for Mako and Kako. As has been reported, Kako is now living alone in the private room of their temporary residence.

Even though there have been similar reports in the past, why did the Imperial Household Agency “explain” at this time?

It is true that the Imperial Household Agency established a Public Relations Office in April of this year, and in many ways there is a mood of clearing up what can be explained, but from the Imperial Household Agency’s stance to date, I felt that this reference was unusual.

Naturally, it can be inferred that there was some communication between Prince Akishino and the head of the Imperial Household Agency.

There is no doubt that Prince Akishino’s own wishes were strong. There is no problem with explaining the situation in accordance with the actual situation, and he probably thought that it was the right thing to do. What he wanted to emphasize in his explanation was the need to reduce costs.

There was some public criticism of the Akishino family regarding Mako’s lump-sum wedding payment.

The public criticized the Akishino family for the lump-sum payment for Mako’s marriage, saying, “To put it in a roundabout way, it is not right that taxpayers’ money should be invested in a marriage that is not fully understood and sympathized with by the public. As a result, Mako declined the lump-sum payment, but this money has the important purpose of preserving dignity, and it is true that some people thought the family’s reaction was a bit excessive.

And, as for the background to the explanation, we also heard the following comment.

The timing of Kako’s marriage is attracting attention. If we turn this explanation around, it means that Kako will eventually move out of the house, so no room was set aside for her. However, what is being raised even more is the possibility that she has a partner who is very certain and will leave the house at some point in the near future. In order to avoid any unwanted criticism in that case, they did not make a room, and it seems that they have made the announcement this time as well” (a member of the Akishino family).

Of course, even though there is no private room, if Mako and Kako were to return to their hometown, they would be provided with a space to spend their time freely.