Prime Minister Shinzo Abe effectively removed Yoshitaka Sakurada, minister in charge of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, from his post on Wednesday over a controversial remark he made in a speech about reconstruction efforts in the Tohoku region following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.
Sakurada, 69, submitted his resignation to Abe that night to take responsibility for the comment. The prime minister accepted the resignation and appointed Shunichi Suzuki, former minister for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, to fill the role.
After accepting Sakurada's resignation, Abe told reporters: "As prime minister, I'd like to deeply apologize to everyone affected by the earthquake for [Sakurada's] remark. I bear responsibility as prime minister for appointing him. We'll devote all of our energy to the reconstruction of the Tohoku region."
Earlier on Wednesday, Sakurada attended a party in Tokyo for Hinako Takahashi, a member of the House of Representatives from Iwate Prefecture, which was severely damaged by the earthquake.
During a salutation in which he urged support for Takahashi, Sakurada remarked, "Takahashi is more important than the reconstruction [from the disaster]."
He subsequently submitted his resignation and told reporters, "I'm sorry for saying something that hurt the feelings of people suffering from the disaster."
After making the remark, Sakurada informed Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga over the phone about what had happened. Abe and Suga viewed the incident as problematic as it offended disaster victims, and decided that Sakurada's resignation was necessary.
The ex-minister has a history of making gaffes. When teen swimmer Rikako Ikee announced in February that she had been diagnosed with leukemia, Sakurada said he was "very disappointed," a comment that attracted widespread criticism. At Wednesday's party, however, he claimed, "The word 'disappointed' is taboo. Various things have been said about me. I'm fed up with it."
Abe determined he could quickly resolve the issue by reappointing Suzuki, who represents a constituency in Iwate Prefecture.
Sakurada is the eighth cabinet minister to resign since Abe returned to power in 2012, not including those replaced through Cabinet reshuffles.
Last Friday, Ichiro Tsukada, state minister for the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry, resigned from his post over comments he made about "sontaku," in which one acts on assumptions about another's unspoken wishes and intentions. Tsukada said he acted on the implied will of Abe and Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso regarding the allocation of research funds for a road project linking Yamaguchi and Fukuoka prefectures.
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