The public is interested in “Prime Minister Kishida’s resignation,” his son’s “big year-end party at his official residence,” and the “after” scoop of the “happy photo.

Now, this may be the point where the Kishida administration’s unraveling began to spread.

On December 30, 2010, a year-end party was held at the official residence of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (66) for his relatives. Not surprisingly, his eldest son, Shotaro (32), who was then secretary to the prime minister, and others were having a big party, lying down on the stairs of the official residence. This was reported in late May 2011 in the Shukan Bunshun (weekly magazine), and in fact, Prime Minister Kishida was also present at the party and was seen in a group photo, which this magazine obtained. The following is a review of the details based on the article distributed on June 6, 2011 (ages and titles in the article are as of the time of publication).

On December 30, 2010, 18 relatives gathered at the “grand year-end party” held at the prime minister’s official residence (Chiyoda Ward). At the center of the gathering, smiling, was Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (65), dressed in a sweatshirt, down vest, and barefoot in his nightgown.

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. On May 26, 2011, at a meeting of the Budget Committee of the House of Councillors, the prime minister even appeared to defend his son, saying, “I have also appeared at meals in my 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 group 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 an acquaintance of the prime minister.

On May 29, 2011, the prime minister suddenly announced that Shoutarou would be replaced as of June 1, 2011. According to a public opinion poll (Nikkei and TV TOKYO) conducted after the incident at the year-end party was reported, the approval rating of the Cabinet dropped 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, whom he can confide in. 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. What Prime Minister Kishida is obsessed with is not policy but the approval rating. With the July 2011 elections in mind, he has come to the conclusion that he wants to remove the ‘element of uncertainty,’ even if it is his beloved son,” said a desk clerk at a national newspaper’s political section.

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.

The public is now only interested in “Prime Minister Kishida’s resignation” and “the timing of his resignation

On May 29, 2011, Prime Minister Kishida responded to questions from reporters,

“I replaced him in order to bring closure.

In a press conference on June 2, 2011, he said that he was responsible for the change of Prime Minister,

In a press conference held on June 2, 2011, he said, “There are two spaces in the official residence: a private space and a public space that serves as a guest of honor, and I sat with my relatives in the private space. I did not think there was any inappropriate behavior in the public space.

He stated that there was no problem. However, it seems that he cannot be so optimistic about the “major incident” that is currently rocking the political world.

The Kishida administration has been rocked by allegations that most of its members, including senior members of the LDP’s largest faction, the Seiwa Seisaku Kenkyukai (Seiwa Policy Research Association), or “Abe Faction,” which is the “center of power” supporting the Kishida administration, have received kickbacks in the form of slush funds one after the other. The government is now in the midst of a major shakeup.

According to a Jiji Press poll conducted from December 8 to 11, 2011, the approval rating for Kishida’s cabinet was 17.1%, below the 20% mark. This is not a figure that can sustain a government. Prime Minister Kishida said at a press conference on December 13, 2011,

Prime Minister Kishida stressed at a press conference on December 13, 2011, that he would “lead the fight to reform the LDP’s structure in order to restore confidence in politics.

However, the Kishida faction (Koike Seisaku Kenkyukai) is also under suspicion that tens of millions of yen in party income over the past five years has not been reported in the faction’s political fund balance sheet. If the investigations by the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office proceed, it is possible that Prime Minister Kishida himself will be interviewed.

It would be no exaggeration to say that Kishida’s administration is now a dead body. It is no exaggeration to say that the Kishida administration is now a dead man. And who will serve as prime minister after that? In any case, it will be extremely difficult to restore the current LDP government.

There is nothing to look forward to in Japanese politics in 2012.