Former Lawmaker Hiroyuki Miyazawa Admits to Yielding to Personal Desires, Leaving His Future Plans Uncertain

I have long thought that the only way to correct the omission in the political fund balance report was to apologize and correct it. As for the women’s issue, I am aware of it, and as long as the facts are not in dispute, I have no choice but to admit it. And I am not one to make excuses.”

Having seen so many lawmakers in the Diet who have made fools of the people, it was refreshing to hear Hiroyuki Miyazawa, 49, say, “I do remember that,” when pressed about the allegations.

Three months have passed since the controversial man resigned as a Diet member after he voluntarily revealed that he had been instructed by his faction not to record the income from Abe faction political fund parties in the income and expenditure report, and that he had been exposed by a woman for having an affair with her father and spending time at delis under a state of emergency declaration. FRIDAY flew to his hometown of Iwata City, Shizuoka Prefecture, to find out what he is doing now.

I’ve seen many people who got into trouble because they made lame excuses when the weekly magazines came to interview them, and I thought it was disgraceful. I also had a feeling that it might happen to me someday. So, when I was interviewed directly, I was very angry. I mean, don’t cause any scandals, you know?

In 2009, the year he was having an affair with his father, Miyazawa won his fourth election by proportional district.

He said, “I was overloaded with work, thinking that I would win the next primary election. When you work energetically, your body becomes energized and your sex drive increases. I let that desire get the better of me. Now that I’m well rested, I’m able to curb my excessive lust. I’m not wearing string pants today!　Instead, I am wearing ball-and-pole-separating (?) trunks. Instead, I am wearing a pair of trunks with a separated ball pole (?). However, tomorrow I will wear string pants, alternating with trunks. Is that a new revelation? (Laughs).

He apologized to his wife, saying he was sorry for what had happened and that he had been forgiven for his problems with women. Miyazawa has been unemployed since his resignation, but when I asked him if it was time for him to return to politics, his eyes lit up.

The LDP is in a difficult situation because of its leaders’ lack of decisiveness and public speaking ability,” he said. When I watch Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s press conferences and other meetings, I have no idea what he is trying to say. This is not appreciated by the people. We cannot overcome the national crisis unless we have a leader who can explain in his own words how he is going to steer the country.”

Incidentally, he says he has no plans to run in the next general election, but he does not intend to leave the political arena.

He said, “Since I have entered this path, I would like to pursue my work in politics. The possibility of a V-shaped recovery in the LDP’s approval rating is very low, and many people say that the liberal forces such as the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan cannot be trusted with the job. Under such circumstances, I would like to convey the message that a new centrist coalition government with forces that break away from the LDP is an option. That is my immediate mission.

Mr. Miyazawa has tightened the knot of his helmet, not his pants, and is now ready to make a clean break with the world of politics. Let’s see what this man who resigned by committing seppuku is prepared to do.

From the August 9, 2024 issue of FRIDAY