Kotaro Kake denies meeting Abe to discuss school project amid cronyism claims
The head the school operator at the center of favoritism allegations denied meeting the prime minister regarding a project to open a veterinary school.
Breaking down the Kake Gakuen scandal: Who's lying, Abe or his political opponents?
Opposition camp lawmakers roared in anger. Stenographers were ordered to stop transcribing. The prime minister accused an opposition leader of lying. This was the chaotic scene Monday at the Diet during an Upper House Budget Committee session. The scandal The issue in question was a familiar one: ...
Abe denies 2015 meeting with Kotaro Kake as opposition pressure mounts over cronyism claims
The prime minister again denied having met with his longtime confidant in February 2015, challenging an account revealed in a newly surfaced document.
Ruling bloc expected to hurry passage of labor reforms after opposition ends Diet boycott
Opposition parties used the boycott to protest the government’s handling of cronyism scandals involving Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Faced with new evidence, Abe denies account of approval for Kake Gakuen vet school
Abe faces grilling from lawmakers after being confronted by a new document suggesting his involvement in a favoritism scandal.
Abe tries to ride out storm in bid to restore trust deficit
A shoo-in a few months ago, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's plunge in popularity imperils his re-election to a third term as LDP president in September 2018, fueling speculation about when he will go and who will replace him. That said, it's still too soon ...
Abe revises statements on Kake scandal in Diet after opposition raises discrepancies
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's struggles continued Tuesday at a special Diet session held to probe the Kake Gakuen scandal, as opposition lawmakers pointed out contradictions in his past remarks on when he learned about the school operator's plan to apply for a special government ...
Sticky bonds of the media and government
Last month, the United Nations Human Rights Council released a report critical of the Japanese government. The author, David Kaye, expressed concern over the way the media is pressured by the authorities to support their policies. The government objected to the report, saying it ...
Does Japan really need more veterinarians?
The ongoing scandal involving the private educational corporation Kake Gakuen hinges on whether or not Prime Minister Shinzo Abe indirectly pushed the Cabinet to approve a new veterinary department for Okayama University of Science, a school run by Kake, whose chairman, Kotaro Kake, is ...
After intense media pressure, education ministry moves to reopen Kake Gakuen probe
After weeks of denials and media pressure, the education minister announces that the investigation into alleged favoritism involving a friend of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will be reopened.
Document suggests Abe swayed deal for construction of friend's school
An opposition lawmaker says a document has been found suggesting the prime minister was involved in a government decision to approve the subsidized construction of a new university department run by a friend.
