Liberal Democratic Party House of Councilors Secretary-General Junichi Ishii (68) is expected to be replaced in the party's House of Councilors reshuffle that will be held soon. Although the person with authority over personnel matters is Seiji Matsuyama, chairman of the House of Councilors, many within the party believe that the wishes of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (party president), with whom he had a feud, were acting. The prime minister's intervention in the House of Councilors personnel affairs, which have been considered a ``sacrosanct'', could have an impact on the operation of the House of Councilors, where the ruling party continues to lack a majority.
Liberal Democratic Party to replace House of Councilors secretary-general Ishii, Kajiyama as chairman of general affairs, Prime Minister Takaichi, executive changes on the 16th
"It's time for a change." Immediately after the Board of Governors meeting on the 15th, where the prime minister gave him discretion over personnel matters, Mr. Matsuyama met with Mr. Ishii at party headquarters and informed him that he would relieve him of his position as House of Councilors secretary-general.
Unlike regular party executive appointments, the chairman of the House of Councilors has the actual decision-making power over the party's appointments in the House of Councilors, including the secretary-general of the House of Councilors and the chairman of the House of Councilors Committee on Country Affairs. Matsuyama explained to those around him that he had taken his physical condition into consideration. A close aide to the prime minister also denied the pressure, saying, ``Nothing was said from the Prime Minister's Office,'' but there is a widespread view within the party that ``the prime minister threw him out.''
According to people familiar with the matter, the prime minister is increasingly distrusting Mr. Ishii. Despite the prime minister's instructions during the recent special Diet session to enact the 2026 budget by the end of the year, the House of Councilors deliberations took time and the government was forced to compile a provisional budget. Toward the end of the Diet session, he was forced to participate in intensive deliberations, and in the eyes of the prime minister, he was seen as ``harassing the party along with the opposition parties.''
Ishii's founding of the Liberal Democratic Party House of Councilors Club, a group believed to have more than 40 members, also aroused the prime minister's wariness. The prime minister reportedly even directly called the members of the group to find out their true intentions.
However, the party's appointment in the House of Councilors is a sacred area that successive prime ministers have been unable to intervene in even if they wanted to. Since Ishii only took over as House of Councilors secretary-general in October of last year, there was strong resistance from the House of Councilors, and several members, including General Affairs Chairman Haruko Arimura, reportedly declined the offer of a ``post-Ishii'' position.
Ishii, who has served as chairman of the House of Councilors Committee on Country Relations, is well-versed in parliamentary management. Mr. Ishii has strong connections with the opposition parties, and is said to have been behind the scenes in paving the way for the passage of the ``sub-capital''-related law in the recent Diet session. Several bills are expected to be debated between the ruling and opposition parties during the extraordinary Diet session in the fall, and some people involved in government relations are saying that the Diet will not be able to pass.
It cannot be denied that the impact could extend beyond the operation of the Diet. The prime minister's aim with this cabinet reshuffle and reshuffle of party executives is to stabilize the party's internal foundations, but if Ishii intensifies his opposition to the prime minister, there is a risk that it will become a flashpoint in the lead-up to next year's party presidential election. A party official predicted, ``The party will begin running toward next year's presidential election.''
