JAPAN’S agriculture minister said he’d been inconsiderate after comments about his plentiful supply of free rice struck a nerve with the public, who face soaring prices in stores.
“I’ve never bought rice,” Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Taku Eto was seen saying on stage in footage from a ruling Liberal Democratic Party fundraiser on Sunday. “I have so much in my pantry from my supporters that I could probably sell it.”
Minister Eto’s name was trending on X.com throughout Monday, with some users calling for him to resign. He later backed down from the remarks when questioned by reporters and insisted he would stay in the job. “I bought rice last week,” he said, adding that he had misspoken and not shown enough consideration for consumers.
Rice prices have doubled in the past year even with the release of emergency stockpiles, and beloved food chains have raised prices one after the other, citing increasingly expensive rice. That poses a risk for the LDP ahead of national upper house elections expected in July.
According to a weekend poll by Kyodo News, 87% of respondents are dissatisfied with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s handling of rice prices.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said Tuesday that the minister had been severely reprimanded by Ishiba and fully retracted the remarks. “Minister Eto’s comments were extremely disrespectful to both consumers who are suffering from soaring rice prices and producers who are working hard to grow it,” Hayashi said. –BLOOMBERG
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