Japan's farm minister resigned yesterday over illegal dealings at a farmers' group he headed, delivering a fresh blow to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe just a week after he revamped his Cabinet to try to revive his popularity.
A junior minister also quit and the head of a parliamentary ethics panel said he would resign from his post and leave the ruling party, both for fudging financial reports.
The latest scandals were expected to erode Abe's support, which saw a rebound after he unveiled his new Cabinet, but political analysts said the 52-year-old conservative was likely to stay on in the absence of a rival who wants the job now.
Abe's first Cabinet was plagued by scandals and gaffes that forced out several ministers and contributed to a disastrous defeat for the ruling camp in a July 29 upper house election.
"I had thought only one more scandal and he would be out, but maybe ... he will keep being unpopular but stay in office," said Koichi Nakano, a Sophia University political science professor.
Agriculture Minister Takehiko Endo was the first to depart from a revamped Cabinet that Abe had hoped would rebuild public support after the election drubbing that cost the governing coalition control of parliament's upper house.
"I decided on the personnel line-up considering who was best suited for the jobs and it's very unfortunate that this was the result," a weary-looking Abe told reporters.
"I want to restore the people's trust by steadily implementing policies for the sake of their livelihoods."
Endo admitted on Saturday that a farmers' aid group he headed had illegally accepted 1.15 million yen ($9,900) from the state and that he had failed to tell Abe this before his appointment.
Abe's first appointee to the portfolio committed suicide in a separate scandal. The second was fired over reports of discrepancies in political funding records. Two other ministers in Abe's first Cabinet were also forced to resign.
A junior minister also quit and the head of a parliamentary ethics panel said he would resign from his post and leave the ruling party, both for fudging financial reports.
The latest scandals were expected to erode Abe's support, which saw a rebound after he unveiled his new Cabinet, but political analysts said the 52-year-old conservative was likely to stay on in the absence of a rival who wants the job now.
Abe's first Cabinet was plagued by scandals and gaffes that forced out several ministers and contributed to a disastrous defeat for the ruling camp in a July 29 upper house election.
"I had thought only one more scandal and he would be out, but maybe ... he will keep being unpopular but stay in office," said Koichi Nakano, a Sophia University political science professor.
Agriculture Minister Takehiko Endo was the first to depart from a revamped Cabinet that Abe had hoped would rebuild public support after the election drubbing that cost the governing coalition control of parliament's upper house.
"I decided on the personnel line-up considering who was best suited for the jobs and it's very unfortunate that this was the result," a weary-looking Abe told reporters.
"I want to restore the people's trust by steadily implementing policies for the sake of their livelihoods."
Endo admitted on Saturday that a farmers' aid group he headed had illegally accepted 1.15 million yen ($9,900) from the state and that he had failed to tell Abe this before his appointment.
Abe's first appointee to the portfolio committed suicide in a separate scandal. The second was fired over reports of discrepancies in political funding records. Two other ministers in Abe's first Cabinet were also forced to resign.
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