Fukuoka Pref. Assembly Head Kurauchi to Resign as Member

Fukuoka, Aug. 24 (Jiji Press)–Fukuoka prefectural assembly head Isao Kurauchi said in a statement Monday that he will resign as a member of the assembly of the southwestern Japan prefecture. His announcement came at a time when the prefectural assembly has been rocked by a high-profile money scandal. Kurauchi, a member of the Liberal Democratic Party, the country’s ruling party, said that he will quit as an assembly member after ending his job as head of the National Association of Chairpersons of Prefectural Assemblies at Tuesday’s meeting of the group to be held in Tokyo. Former heads and former deputy heads of the Fukuoka assembly have stated that they had paid large sums of cash to senior officials of the LDP group in the assembly before assuming their posts. Criticism has been growing both in and outside the prefecture although Kurauchi and others have denied receiving such money. For the investigation of the scandal, the prefectural assembly has decided to set up a panel of outside experts based on the related guidelines of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations. Kurauchi, a heavyweight in the prefectural assembly, told reporters Wednesday that he would step down as its head “at an appropriate time” to take responsibility for the turmoil at the assembly while denying an intention to resign as an assembly member. He failed to mention in Monday’s statement why he would quit as a member of the assembly. Kurauchi was elected a Fukuoka assembly member for the first time in 1987 and is now in his 10th term. He has also served as chief of the LDP’s Fukuoka prefectural chapter. In a rare development, Kurauchi assumed the position of prefectural assembly head for the second time in April 2025. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]