It was only a matter of time before Taku Eto would be forced to resign as agriculture minister after he made tone-deaf remarks about rice price increases.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and his ruling Liberal Democratic Party have far too narrow a margin in the legislature and face too tough a battle in the Upper House election slated for this summer to tolerate such gaffes.
Eto was replaced by Shinjiro Koizumi in an effort by Ishiba to capitalize on the young politician’s star power and smarts to repair the damage and better position the party for the ballot anticipated in July. The move is unlikely to solve the problem of soaring rice prices. That, not cosmetic fixes, will determine the LDP’s future in the election campaign.
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