Four ruling party lawmakers from Japan who visited “Night Ginza” amid corona emergency

In a situation where an emergency was declared due to a novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19), four Japanese ruling party lawmakers decided to resign or withdraw from their offices while wandering around a bar with female receptionists in the middle of the night. Yoshihide Suga, who has risen to the cutting edge of public opinion in response to the Corona 19 insolvency, is expected to be another bad news for the regime.

On the 1st, three LDP lawmakers, including Congressman Jun Matsumoto (center), are holding a press conference. [NHK 방송 화면캡처]

According to Japanese media such as NHK broadcasting on the 1st, the former Liberal Democratic Party’s acting chairman Jun Matsumoto, vice president of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Daido Tanose, and Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Countermeasure Committee, Takashi Otsuka, attended a midnight club dinner. I took responsibility and quit the party. All three are incumbent members of the House of Representatives.

Earlier, on the 26th of last month, the Japanese weekly magazine Shukanshincho reported that Congressman Matsumoto visited two clubs in Ginza, Tokyo’s downtown area, until 11pm after dinner on December 18th. did. After the report came out, Rep. Matsumoto said, “I went to the club by myself,” but it was revealed that Tanose and Otsuka were also present. The Japanese government has restricted restaurant and bar business to 8 pm during the emergency. He also advised the public to refrain from going outside the house after 8 pm.

Rep. Matsumoto admitted at an interview on the 1st, “I said I was alone to cover my juniors. I apologize for explaining something different from the truth.”

Apart from these, Kiyohiko Toyama, former secretary of the Gong Myung Party, who appeared to have visited the Ginza Club on the 22nd of last month, also announced his intention to resign from the House of Representatives on the same day. Rep. Toyama decided to drop the council after it was revealed that he spent 110,000 yen (about 1.17 million won) at a cabaret-style club for political funding along with access to the club. The Gongmyeong Party, together with the Liberal Democratic Party, leads the Japanese coalition regime.

On the evening of the 6th, citizens are passing through the streets of Ginza, Tokyo. [AP=연합뉴스]

It is rare for multiple incumbent lawmakers to quit at the same time due to unfavorable affairs. The Constitutional Democratic Party, the 1st opposition party, demanded that Suga “apologize directly to the Prime Minister for this occurrence”. Prime Minister Suga will express his regret at a press conference on the 2nd, announcing the one-month extension of the emergency.

Prime Minister Suga’s popularity is plummeting. In a poll released by the Nippon Geizai Shimbun on the 1st, when asked about “a person suitable as the next prime minister,” Prime Minister Suga received 6%, placing it in fifth place.

First place was Taro Kono, who was supported by 25%, in charge of administrative reform, second place was Shigeru Ishiba, former secretary of the Liberal Democratic Party, and third place was Shinjiro Koizumi for the environment. (13%). Following that, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe rose to fourth place with 7%, surpassing Prime Minister Suga.

Tokyo = Correspondent Lee Young-hee [email protected]