There is currently a shortage of rice in Japan, which is causing great concern among the citizens. The thoughtless statement made by the Minister of Agriculture, that he has never bought a sack of rice, was the last straw.
In Japan, there is currently a shortage of rice, which is deeply concerning the citizens. The careless statement made by the Minister of Agriculture, admitting to never having bought a sack of rice, was the last straw. Japan's Minister of Agriculture, Taku Eto, had to resign on Wednesday after stating that he had never bought a sack of rice. This statement is quite unfortunate as rice is not only a staple food in the country but also extremely scarce. Consequently, prices are high. Citizens are complaining that the government seems incapable of addressing the rice shortage. Even the release of thousands of tons of rice from a government emergency stockpile did not improve the situation, as reported by the New York Times. In this situation, Eto then made the aforementioned speech on agricultural policy: "I have never bought rice myself. Honestly, my supporters give me quite a lot of rice. I have so much rice at home that I could sell it." It was tactically unwise to publicly admit how far removed he is from the reality of the voters and cannot comprehend the problem. In any case, frustration boiled over after this casual remark on Sunday. A boon for the populists. "We do not need an Agriculture Minister who does not understand the perspective of consumers and producers," said Kazuya Shimba, Secretary-General of the People's Democratic Party, a small, right-wing populist party. Although Eto quickly apologized, the backlash only intensified. Opposition parties seized the political opportunity and increased pressure, as reported by the newspaper. They threatened the Minister of Agriculture with a vote of no confidence in parliament. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba then took decisive action. His approval ratings had already fallen to less than 20%. "If the confusion over the remark had persisted, it would have affected the implementation of agricultural policy," Ishiba justified the decision to dismiss Eto. The successor is now the Liberal Democrat Shinjiro Koizumi, son of a former Prime Minister. Rice shortage. The current rice shortage can be attributed to decades-old guidelines that were meant to protect small farmers and prevent newcomers to agriculture from buying land or cultivating land. This resulted in thousands of hectares remaining unused. Efforts to change the system were blocked by the national agricultural cooperative and other interest groups in rural areas. They are unwavering supporters of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. This has put Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in a dilemma. Urban voters are frustrated by rising prices and scarcity, which has led supermarkets to ration at times.
