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Japan's PM under fire over son's 'paid' sightseeing trips while on duty overseas
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IANS | 31 Jan, 2023
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida came under continued fire on
Tuesday from the opposition camp over allegations his son used
taxpayers' money for sightseeing trips oversees while on official duty.
Kishida's son, Shotaro, 32, who serves as his secretary,
was alleged by the Shukan Shincho magazine to have visited tourist
hot-spots in Paris, London and Ottawa at the taxpayers' expense and used
a government-owned vehicle, while the prime minister was carrying out
official duties overseas in January, Xinhua News Agency reported.
The
allegations have dealt a further blow to the already slumping approval
rating for Kishida's cabinet, following a number of high-profile
ministerial resignations over funding scandals, gaffes and links to a
shady religious organisation.
The approval rating has also taken a
major hit from the Kishida administration's contentious and publicly
denounced plan to raise taxes to fund an unprecedented increase in the
country's defence spending.
According to local media polls in
December, the prior controversies led to the approval rating dropping to
around the 30 percent-mark, the lowest level since Kishida launched his
cabinet in October 2021 and a level below which has historically been a
harbinger of the end of a prime minister's tenure.
The Japanese
leader initially caught flak in October when he hand-picked Shotaro, the
eldest of his three sons, to serve as his executive secretary, sparking
fervent accusations of nepotism from the opposition bloc as well as the
public.
The latest headache for Kishida follows his week-long
trip to Britain, Canada, France, Italy and the United States, ahead of
the Group of Seven summit in May to be held in Hiroshima Prefecture,
Kishida's constituency.
At a parliamentary committee session
Tuesday, Kishida, under a grilling from the opposition, refused to
definitively comment on his son's actions.
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Customs Exchange Rates |
Currency |
Import |
Export |
US Dollar
|
66.20
|
64.50 |
UK Pound
|
87.50
|
84.65 |
Euro
|
78.25
|
75.65 |
Japanese
Yen |
58.85 |
56.85 |
As on 13 Aug, 2022 |
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Daily Poll |
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