Politics & Government

LDP’s Moriyama Faction to Be Dissolved

The Yomiuri Shimbun
Liberal Democratic Party General Council Chairperson Hiroshi Moriyama speaks at a press conference at party headquarters in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, on Monday.

Jiji Press

17:33 JST, January 25, 2024

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — The faction of the Liberal Democratic Party that is headed by LDP General Council Chairman Hiroshi Moriyama decided Thursday to disband itself.

The faction made the decision at a general meeting based on a draft interim report compiled by the LDP’s political reform task force following a high-profile political funds scandal involving party factions. The Moriyama faction is considering forming a new group.

“We made the decision as all of us believe that the choice of dissolution is important to regain public trust in politics and make the party trustworthy,” Moriyama told reporters. “After a while, we’ll consider ways to study our policy themes with fellow lawmakers.”

The faction, now with eight members, was established in 1998 by former LDP Vice President Taku Yamasaki. Former Secretary-General Nobuteru Ishihara succeeded Yamasaki in 2012.

Moriyama became the faction’s head in 2021 after Ishihara lost a seat in the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of parliament.

The group is the fourth LDP faction that has decided to disband itself. The three predecessors are those formerly or currently led by the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and former Secretary-General Toshihiro Nikai.

Meanwhile, Vice President Taro Aso and Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi plan to maintain the factions they respectively head.