Japan's new PM faces setback
Japan's new Prime Minister Taro Aso yesterday faced his first political setback just days after taking office as his transport minister was forced to resign over a series of embarrassing gaffes.
The resignation was a serious blow to the outspoken, flamboyant Aso, who had been expected to call a snap election -- perhaps as early as this week -- to capitalise on his government's honeymoon period.
Instead, his administration has fared poorly in initial public opinion polls after taking the reins on Wednesday, and observers said the resignation of Transport Minister Nariaki Nakayama would only make things worse.
Nakayama made a series of blunders last week in his very first interview, one of which was saying that Japan was "homogenous" -- a remark which raised the hackles of the country's indigenous Ainu people.
He also said schools with unionised teachers had lower standards, and accused farmers fighting for land seized for airport construction of "making profits by whining."
"I have resigned from the post," Nakayama told a hastily arranged press conference after an early morning meeting with Aso. "If my remarks have made any impact on parliamentary proceedings, it would not be what I had intended."
Former administrative reform minister Kazuyoshi Kaneko, 65, will replace him.
Aso apologised over the incident, calling Nakayama's comments "extremely inappropriate."
"I apologise from my heart to the people subjected to his remarks," the prime minister told reporters Sunday.
Aso's government is expecting some tough battles in parliament, with the opposition in control of the upper house and piling the pressure on the prime minister to put his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on the line by calling early elections.
Opposition leader Ichiro Ozawa said Nakayama's resignation was "no surprise," telling reporters: "I believe the prime minister bears significant responsibility."
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