Fukuda's Resignation

Less than a year into his tenure, Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukada resigned suddenly on the 1st of September this year, launching his country into political turbulence and economic uncertainty. He did so during an evening news conference, saying that he was stepping down to avoid a “political vacuum”, following a divided parliament locked in a stalemate.
The Japanese parliament is split between his ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which controls the lower house, and the opposition, which controls the upper house. The opposition parties have blocked government bills and appointments, including Fukada’s preferred governor of the central bank. Last November, Japanese ships were forced to temporarily withdraw from a refuelling mission in support of US-led forces in Afghanistan after the upper house refused to extend it. "If it will help even a little bit to make the parliamentary session go smoother, I decided that it might be better for someone other than me to lead," he said in a televised speech. Fukuda had failed to achieve a compromise with the Democrats, trying to get them to realize that political bargaining and arguments in Parliament had no place in people’s livelihoods.

Cabinet problems were not the only push factors for Fukuda. "You may say it's irresponsible for me to resign at this time. Well, it would be good if parliamentary proceedings went smoothly if I stayed on, but in my case, I also had support ratings, along with various other problems," he said. His party had hoped his leadership at Japan's summertime summit of the leaders of the Group of Eight major industrialized countries would help his approval ratings. But the numbers barely budged. Latest poll rankings have showed that his support had slumped to 29% over the past month, showing clearly his unpopularity with the people.

The launch of the $18-billion economic stimulus package only days earlier was also inconsequential to his image. The package, aimed at bolstering the flagging economy, was regarded by many analysts as ineffective. It proposed greater spending and tax cuts, yet, growth has continued in a downward spiral due to anemic consumer spending and rising fuel and food prices.

The announcement also came one month after Fukuda installed his widely expected successor, former Foreign Minister Taro Aso, as secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party, aiming for a surge in support for the government. He conceded that both the political reshuffle and the economic stimulus package had failed to boost support for his extremely disliked administration.

Fukada’s resignation brings to light new speculation on the Japanese political arena. Some believe that he had reached his breaking point. Others, like analyst Minoru Morita, say his resignation was “done with calculation”. He believes that Fukuda knew that the Liberal Democratic Party would lose if they contested an election under the current circumstances, and Fukuda could not bear to have that happen under him, so he resigned to allow another Liberal Democrat to run the country—this has brought about a string of protests from the opposition.

Fukuda’s resignation has thrown the political race into the open, and it is now anybody’s game.