Abe’s Former Secretary Running for Rikken “Yamaguchi Rebellion” Brings Disturbance to Nagatacho

There has been a huge earthquake in the lap of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The “Yamaguchi Rebellion” was initiated by the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). It was announced that the “man who knows everything” who used to be Prime Minister Abe’s secretary would unexpectedly “run for office from the Rikken Democratic Party.

Former secretary gun” who knows Abe’s dark side

In this summer’s House of Councilors election, Rikken will field Kenji Akiyama, 52, in the Yamaguchi Prefecture electoral district. He worked as a private secretary in Shinzo Abe’s office for as long as 14 years, from 1993 to 2007. In other words, he is a man who knows the “inside story” of former Prime Minister Abe and his office.

Although the time period in which he worked may differ, it is possible that he has some information about the “morikake” and “sakura” issues, the truth about the “document falsification” issue, and whether or not former Prime Minister Abe was involved in it. When and in what form will this information be made public? Yamaguchi’s political and business circles fear that something may be revealed that should not be known to the public. The same is true, of course, in Nagata-cho. The “officials” must not be at ease.

Ahead of the crucial Upper House election, Rikken’s Kenta Izumi has decided to take a chance by putting up a candidate with outstanding destructive power in former Prime Minister Abe’s hometown as the first step in the LDP’s offensive against the LDP.

A former cabinet member said.

Akiyama must know the background of the Moritomo Gakuen land acquisition and the establishment of the Kake Gakuen veterinary school, even if not in real time. Not to mention the so-called “cherry blossom issue,” the cherry blossom viewing party at the prime minister’s residence to which Mr. Abe invited his own supporters’ association as a preferential guest.

He must know all about his honeymoon with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the thinking of former Prime Minister Abe and his office, and its political structure. The election campaign will be a good opportunity to summarize the inner workings of Abe’s politics, which still hold sway in the LDP even after he retired as prime minister.

This time, Kensuke Onishi, the campaign manager of Rikken, has consulted with the Yamaguchi Prefectural Diet members and decided to run for Akiyama’s seat. This is a great threat to the LDP.”

Distance from Abe” determines political life.

In some cases, this will not only damage Mr. Abe. For Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is planning a long-term administration, the exposure of the “negative legacy of Abe’s politics” at this juncture would inevitably damage his image. Moreover, within the party, influential figures are making moves toward the LDP presidential election in two years’ time.

In fact, what everyone in the LDP is struggling with right now is how to distance themselves from Mr. Abe,” said Mr. Kishida. Secretary General Toshimitsu Mogi wants to have the Abe and Aso factions, which make up the majority, behind him. Similarly, Koichi Hagiuda, Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry, Yasutoshi Nishimura, and Sanae Takaichi, the chairman of the policy research committee, are also relying on Abe. On the other hand, Taro Kono and Shigeru Ishiba are in close contact with former Prime Minister Yoshihide Kan, who is trying to build his own political force.

The LDP is now being asked to decide whether it is “pro-Abe” or “anti-Abe. They are only thinking about the election. This will not win the understanding of the people. That cannot be good enough. I think it is time for the party to come to a conclusion. If we don’t do so, we have become a party that cannot move forward.” (LDP delegate)

The horror of the fact that the will of a single politician can have a great influence on the direction of a country was made abundantly clear by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In today’s society, “this kind of thing” is a reality. The misfortune of the Russian people is not a matter for others.

The world has clearly learned that political methods that lead society in a “certain direction” by force without disclosing information to the people are clearly wrong. We must admit that this distortion is causing Japan’s society to stagnate and stop growing.

The Yamaguchi Rebellion may be the beginning of a realignment of the ruling party, and after this summer’s Upper House election, we may see more “rebellions” not only in Yamaguchi but also in other parts of Japan.