Japan's Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election candidate, climate expert, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Shinjiro Koizumi, was reportedly bribed by the platform "Cheerleader". Japanese media revealed that Koizumi's campaign team colluded with Japanese online platforms to expand their public relations efforts, demanding that only positive comments be posted.
According to Wen Chun Weekly, Koizumi's campaign team's public relations manager and former data minister, Kailun Makishima, sent an email requesting that the highly viewed Japanese video platform "Nico Nico Animation" only upload positive comments from citizens when Koizumi expressed his political views, including praising 44 year old Koizumi for his quick response, good looks, and ability to take care of young people.
In addition to the overwhelmingly positive comments online, some posts also targeted the female candidate and former Minister of Economy and Security, Hayao Takashi (64 years old), who is currently on par with Koizumi in popularity.
Although Koizumi's scandal of buying cheerleaders is likely to have a negative impact on him, a joint survey by Sankei Shimbun and JNN News shows that 30% of lawmakers are considering voting for Koizumi, with Cabinet Secretary General Lin Fangzheng in second place and Takashi in third place.
Nikkei pointed out that among these three individuals, Lin Fangzheng's policy line is closest to that of the Shi Po government, while Gao Shi is highly likely to overturn the US Japan tariffs agreed upon by the Shi Po government and renegotiate with the United States.
Takashi said on a Fuji TV program on Sunday, September 28th, "If there is any inequality that harms Japan's national interests, we must speak out resolutely. Therefore, there is also a possibility of renegotiation between Japan and the United States
The Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election held on October 4th received a total of 590 votes, with half of the votes from members of parliament and half from party members. If no candidate receives a majority of support in the first round of voting, a final election will be held between the two candidates with the highest number of votes.
Koizumi's presidential election campaign last year saw him lead in the first round of parliamentary votes, but he did not receive enough votes from party members to enter the final election. In this election, he faced challenges in winning party votes, including offending agricultural groups by suppressing rice prices and exposing his consideration of approving the planting of high-quality Japanese grape "Sunshine Musk" in New Zealand.
Japanese varieties of seedlings were reportedly exported to China and South Korea in 2016, and currently these two countries are selling them in Southeast Asia at prices lower than Japan's. In 2020, the authorities amended the law to restrict the export of new varieties.
To appease farmers, Koizumi said, "Without an understanding of agricultural production areas, we will not act rashly. We will maintain the legitimacy of Japanese products through appropriate contracts and make efforts to expand exports for farmers
Lingko Nakamura, a Japanese political security commentator, analyzed in an interview with the Lianhe Zaobao: "The LDP president election is not necessarily a winner with high popularity. In the second half, it is estimated that there will be great changes, and the good drama will come later. What the LDP needs is a capable person to be on top. Koizumi's youth is an advantage, but it may also let him lose points, because he has never been a defense minister or foreign minister."
Yomiuri Shimbun's chief editor, Goro Hashimoto, believes that this election may be "explosive". He said, "Of course, the Liberal Democratic Party hopes to regain a majority of seats in the general election with a popular face, but to ensure that policies do not go wrong, the most suitable candidates should be those who have held important positions and have rich political experience
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