Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi submitted to parliament a statement from her secretary denying involvement in alleged smear videos from last year's leadership race. Opposition parties criticized the move as insufficient and called for further scrutiny.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Wednesday submitted to parliament a statement from her publicly funded first secretary. The statement denied that the secretary, the Takaichi office or campaign created or distributed videos defaming other candidates or asked any third party to do so.
The allegations first emerged in late April in Shukan Bunshun magazine. They claimed Takaichi's campaign used an IT firm to make anonymous videos attacking rivals, including Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, during the LDP leadership race last October.
Takaichi had denied her own involvement in early May. On June 22 she told parliament she preferred to submit the secretary's statement rather than answer questions herself, citing sleep loss from repeated exchanges.
The secretary's statement noted he attended an online meeting with the alleged video creator before the leadership race but added he had no memory of the details. The Centrist Reform Alliance demanded the secretary be summoned to parliament and called for special Budget Committee deliberations after the current session adjourns this weekend.
