When tendering his resignation on September 12, PM Shinzo Abe said he decided not to stay in office any longer just to avoid chaos in the Diet (parliament).

With this decision, Mr Abe was fully aware that he was finding himself in a difficult position to build a strong and transparent government as he pledged to fulfil his political mission during his swearing-in ceremony in September last year. Born after World War II to become the youngest PM on the land of the rising sun, Mr Abe planned to breathe new life into Japan’s position in Asia and the world. Therefore, Japanese people placed high hopes on their new PM.

Regarding his external affairs, Mr Abe had already worked towards improving relations between Japan and China, which were frozen for years and promoting multifaceted cooperation with India and with some other Asian nations. However, in terms of internal affairs, he failed to make progress as his government did not give proper attention to issues of great concern to Japanese people such as healthcare and retirement pensions. Then came a series of scandals relating to the 50 million missing pension records worth US$165 billion. This was regarded as a sensitive issue in Japan where many retired people were receiving Government assistance. An economic expert from Fujitsu Research Institute Martin Schulz commented that there had been no remarkable progress in healthcare reform and retirement policies.

Meanwhile, the Japanese Government was not built on a firm and professional foundation. Mr Abe’s cabinet was regarded as resulting from nepotism because most of his cabinet members were friends selected to team up with him. Just after one year in power, Mr Abe’s cabinet started to fall apart with the resignation of five ministers and the suicide of one minister. As a result, his ruling coalition composed of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the New Komeito Party (NKP) suffered its humiliating defeat in the July 29 Upper House elections.

The cabinet reshuffle in late August was considered an attempt to regain the position and reputation of the ruling party. However, it failed to turn the tables as in early September two senior ministers were again accused of getting involved in financial scandals. Consequently, public discontent with Mr Abe’s cabinet continued to grow and his poll ratings plummeted to 20 percent in the last several months.

In the face of the worsening situation, it was difficult for Mr Abe to win the trust and support of the public. He almost lost his leadership role after the Social Democratic Party (SDP) at the opening of the Diet session on September 10 criticized Mr Abe for extending Japan's naval support for the US-led mission in Afghanistan beyond the current November deadline. A petition condemning senior ministers involved in financial scandals added to his problems. Seeking counter-measures against the opposition could only stir up chaos in the Japanese political theatre. In his resignation speech, Mr Abe said “if I delay my decision to step down, the government will face greater difficulties in parliament, I myself have to make a decision as soon as possible.”

Mr Abe’s decision is considered reasonable as it has paved the way for restabilising the Japanese political theatre. First, Mr Abe’s resignation aims to help the Diet avoid unnecessary controversy over the renewed anti-terrorism law and the confrontation between the SDP and the ruling LDP. Only by doing so can the LDP choose a new leader and set up a new government. At the moment, former foreign minister Taro Aso, who is LDP Secretary General, is the most likely candidate for the post.