Kishida Dismisses Justice Minister over Gaffe

Tokyo, Nov. 11 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida effectively dismissed Justice Minister Yasuhiro Hanashi on Friday over a gaffe Hanashi made about his ministerial position.

Kishida named former agriculture minister Ken Saito, 63, to replace Hanashi.

Hanashi drew strong criticism after saying on Wednesday that the justice minister is an unspectacular position in which the holder makes headlines only when approving executions.

Kishida once rejected calls for removing Hanashi. But he eventually found it difficult to keep Hanashi in the post as the verbal blunder affected parliamentary discussions.

Speaking to reporters after accepting Hanashi's letter of resignation, Kishida said, "I've approved his resignation, as his rash statement tarnished the public's trust and caused delays in parliamentary deliberations on important policies."

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]