THE JAPAN NEWS



 

Several controversial figures have been repeatedly apologizing ahead of the upcoming House of Representatives election, including former Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers who were forced to leave the party for going to a nightclub during a state of emergency over the novel coronavirus.

Jun Matsumoto touted his policies to passersby near a supermarket in Naka Ward, Yokohama, on Sunday. The 71-year-old left the LDP after he was discovered to have stayed at a nightclub in Tokyo’s Ginza area until late at night during a state of emergency.

He plans to run as an independent candidate in the Kanagawa No. 1 Constituency.

“It will be a struggle for purification. I want to regain the trust of the people,” Matsumoto told The Yomiuri Shimbun on Oct. 14, when the lower house was dissolved.

When a Japanese politician involved in a scandal gets reelected, it is often said that “the person has been purified by voters.”

On Saturday, Matsumoto stood on a street for the first time since the dissolution. A 26-year-old woman passing by said, “I think what he tries to do as a lawmaker in the future is important.”

Taido Tanose, who also left the LDP over the Ginza scandal, has visited more than 5,000 supporters since the matter came to light. The 47-year-old has repeatedly apologized ahead of running as an independent candidate in the Nara No. 3 Constituency.

“Will they forgive me or not?” Tanose asked in a sad tone. However, he was also hopeful, saying, “Most of them have told me that they’re looking forward to my next term.”

In contrast, Takashi Otsuka, who was also at the club, gave up on running in the election. Elected from the Osaka No. 8 Constituency, Otsuka announced his decision to retire on Oct. 12, just a week before campaigning was set to officially start.

Toru Ishizaki, who resigned as a lawmaker in September over an assault on his former secretary, is running for the lower house again after changing his party affiliation.

The 37-year-old belonged to the LDP but left the party over the scandal, before he was ordered to pay a fine of ¥200,000 in October last year.

Ishizaki will run in the Niigata No. 1 Constituency as a candidate of the Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party).

“I want to apologize again. I want to do my best to revitalize the political system,” he said in a street speech.

A man who is currently appealing the court ruling that sentenced him to prison also plans to run.

Tsukasa Akimoto, a former LDP lawmaker elected from the Tokyo No. 15 Constituency, was charged with bribery and another crime in connection with corruption linked to a project to build an integrated resort featuring a casino. Akimoto will run in the same constituency as an independent candidate.