Fukui Governor Resigns over Sexual Harassment

Fukui, Dec. 4 (Jiji Press)–Tatsuji Sugimoto, governor of Fukui Prefecture, central Japan, resigned on Thursday over his sexual harassment against prefectural government employees. The Fukui prefectural assembly accepted his resignation at a plenary session on the same day. Sugimoto, 63, submitted a resignation letter on Wednesday to assembly speaker Takashi Miyamoto after admitting to sending inappropriate messages that constitute sexual harassment to multiple Fukui government workers. “I sincerely apologize for the significant inconvenience caused by my resignation midway through my term of office,” Sugimoto said in a press conference held after the assembly session. “I would like to convey my sincere apologies to everyone who suffered harm and was deeply hurt by my inappropriate words and actions.” Although he denied plans to run again in a gubernatorial election, Sugimoto said he may stay involved in politics. Under the public offices election law, a gubernatorial election must be held within 50 days of the prefectural assembly head notifying the election board of the governor’s resignation. The Fukui gubernatorial race is widely expected to be held on Jan. 25. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]