Japanese Defence Minister Tomomi Inada on Friday resigned from her post after a scandal over handling of military documents drastically reduced public support for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. “I submitted my resignation to the prime minister and it was accepted,” she said, according to AFP.
Inada may be replaced during a Cabinet reshuffle next week. Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida will replace Inada, said Prime Minister Abe. Support for Abe’s government has sunk below 30% according to opinion polls in Japan, with many voters feeling that the prime minister and his aides took them for granted, reported Reuters.
Inada’s ministry has come under fire for its handling of log reports filed by Japanese peacekeepers in South Sudan, which revealed the worsening security situation there. Speaking to the media after Inada announced her resignation, the prime minister apologised. “I apologise from the bottom of my heart to the people for this situation in which a minister resigns,” he told reporters.
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