Takaichi Refers to Hagiuda as ‘Kizumono,’ Suggesting Shady Past, Noda Says ‘I Was Surprised’

The Yomiuri Shimbun

20:00 JST, October 9, 2025

Sanae Takaichi, the newly elected president of the Liberal Democratic Party, introduced Koichi Hagiuda, the party’s new executive acting secretary general, as a “kizumono” (damaged product), meaning someone with a shady past, when the party’s new leadership team went to greet members of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan on Wednesday.

The expression referred to his involvement in the former Abe faction’s violation of the Political Funds Control Law.

The incident happened when the LDP leadership team was touring the offices of opposition parties and parliamentary groups in the Diet. During one closed-door meeting, as Takaichi was introducing the members of the team, she said, “We have one kizumono,” according to CDPJ leader Yoshihiko Noda.

“I was surprised to hear the word ‘kizumono,’ but I understood clearly that she cares about the problem,” Noda said.

In response, the LDP’s General Council Chair Haruko Arimura said on a Wednesday night television program that Takaichi had made the comment as “a little joke.”

When the LDP top officials went to greet the Democratic Party for the People, the opposition party leader Yuichiro Tamaki asked for an early review of the income tax exemption threshold, something which the LDP, Komeito and the DPFP had already agreed on. Takaichi indicated that she was amenable to this, saying, “As you wish.”