Another headache surfaced for unpopular Prime Minister Taro Aso on Tuesday as Justice Parliamentary Secretary Chuko Hayakawa said he intended to resign after the fiscal 2009 budget passes.
After badgering from senior government officials, however, Hayakawa later retracted his words and said he would stay on.
Nevertheless, Hayakawa's outburst underlined the growing inability of Aso to control the Liberal Democratic Party, which faces the prospect of entering a critical general election led by a prime minister with historically low approval ratings.