Japan’s Economy Minister Akira Amari has said he is resigning amid corruption allegations, BBC News reports.
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At a televised press conference in Tokyo, Amari acknowledged that an aide had received 5 million yen ($42,000) from the company and had used 3 million of that for personal use.
Amari’s resignation over bribe taking is thus far the most significant political crisis faced by Abe since he took office in 2012.
Abe is also looking to have the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which is to be formally signed in New Zealand next month, ratified by Japanese lawmakers during the current session of parliament.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
“In order to escape deflation and build a strong economy, we need to pass the budget and related important bills as soon as possible”, Mr Amari said.
While asserting his legal innocence, Amari said he was stepping down to prevent the scandal from being a distraction to the Abe administration’s drive to pull the country out of deflation.
An area magazine had reported that his aides and Mr Amari were given cash with a construction company in return for a number of favours linked to property ownership.
A follow-up piece on Thursday said Mr Amari twice pocketed envelopes containing ¥500,000 in cash.
But “considering my responsibility as a member of parliament who has to oversee my secretaries, my duty as a cabinet member and pride as a politician, I will resign my post as of today”.
Amari looked tearful Thursday as he announced his resignation and apologized for the scandal that caused him embarrassment, according to Bloomberg.
Abe’s previous stint in power, in 2007, unraveled after a number of high-profile resignations. He also said: “Anything that hampers this must be eliminated, and I’m no exception”.
Amari, who has been a close ally of the prime minister and a core member of his “Abenomics” program, is the fourth minister to resign over allegations of financial impropriety.
Japanese Economy Minister Akira Amari said on Tuesday that the Bank of Japan does not signal in advance whether it will ease monetary policy, when asked about the chance of additional easing this week.
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“Communicating with markets is part of central bank policy, and I don’t think the BOJ would transmit their intentions in advance”, Amari said.
