Oct. 25 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Prime Minister of Japan, Fumio Kishida, has confirmed this Tuesday that he has appointed the former Minister of Health Shigeyuki Goto as the new Minister of Economy to replace Daishiro Yamagiwa, who has resigned after suffering strong pressure for his ties with the controversial Church of Unification, which has gained notoriety in the wake of the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Goto took office this afternoon, just three days before the scheduled date for the Government to announce a package of additional economic measures to mitigate the impact of rising prices and the coronavirus pandemic.
Kishida has cited Goto, 66,’s political experience and “great communication skills” as the main reasons for his appointment, according to reports from the Kiodo news agency.
Yamagiwa’s resignation letter – who has become the first Cabinet member to resign from his position – has dealt a blow to the Kishida Administration and responds to calls made by the opposition, which demanded his departure from the Government .
Kishida has recently shown a more rigid stance towards the Unification Church after receiving criticism about the government’s laxity towards the religious movement, especially after receiving numerous complaints from followers who claimed to be coerced into donating large sums of money to the sect. .
Several Japanese deputies have denounced having suffered pressure from groups affiliated with the Unification Church to carry out policies related to the sect. Thus, two of these groups would have tried to persuade the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (PLD) to promote policies in response to the support received on their part in electoral processes held previously.
