Justice Minister Minoru Yanagida resigned Monday over his frank but offensive statement about his Cabinet job. His careless words not only cost him his position but have damaged the credibility of Prime Minister Naoto Kan, who appointed him to the Cabinet post.
In a Nov. 14 speech at a gathering of supporters in Hiroshima, Mr. Yanagida said that to cope with questions in the Diet, a justice minister only has to memorize and repeat two phrases — "I would like to refrain from making a statement on a particular case" and "We are doing our best in accordance with the law and evidence." In short, he basically said that a justice minister's job is easy.
Mr. Yanagida also told his supporters that he was surprised to be appointed as justice minister because he had no experience in legal affairs for the past 20 years. Perhaps he lowered his guard because he was speaking in a gathering to celebrate his appointment as justice minister, but his statement gave the impression that he was making light of both his job and Diet discussions.