From Nikkan Gendai Digital.
It is a new development in the smoldering allegations that Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike has falsified her academic credentials.
The monthly magazine Bungeishunju published an article titled, "'I was involved in the manipulation of academic credentials,' Governor Yuriko Koike's former aide bombshell accusation" in its 10th issue.
The article reiterated doubts about her graduation from Cairo University, one of Egypt's most prestigious universities.
What about the "diagonal lines" that are not visible at the top of the certificate but only spread out at the bottom?
The testimony was given by Toshiro Kojima, former Secretary General of the "Tomin First no Kai" (Tokyo Metropolitan People's Association), which is led by Governor Koike.
When Governor Koike was first elected governor in 2016, he was appointed a special advisor to the TMG.
A former bureaucrat at the Ministry of the Environment, he promoted "Cool Biz" with Governor Koike when she was a minister.
He was called Koike's close aide.
Kojima's testimony is summarized as follows.
In late May 2008, just before the election for Koike's second term as governor, a nonfiction book titled "A Woman Acting Like an Emperor" was published. Koike was accused of falsifying her academic credentials.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly was in chaos, and Governor Koike, troubled by the situation, consulted Kojima.
Kojima suggested asking Cairo University to issue a statement certifying her graduation as a solution.
Three days later, a statement signed by the president of Cairo University was posted on the Facebook page of the Egyptian Embassy in Japan.
The statement stated that Cairo University certifies that Governor Koike graduated from the university.
In response, the situation was said to have calmed down.
However, it is.
When Kojima later met with a former journalist who is a brain of Governor Koike, he confided, "Actually, the Cairo University statement posted on the Facebook page of the Egyptian Embassy in Japan was drafted by Ms. Koike and written by me.
In other words, Governor Koike is suspected of fabricating the statement herself to prove her graduation.
Governor Koike responded to Bungeishunju through her attorney, "I am under no obligation to respond, and I believe that the need to answer does not exist.
Nikkan Gendai has often reported on Koike's alleged academic fraud.
In November last year, we published an article by Momoyo Kitahara, who lived with Governor Koike when she was studying in Egypt.
Based on Ms. Kitahara's testimony and on past books written by Governor Koike, inconsistencies in the timing of her entrance into and graduation from Cairo University were revealed.
After all, Governor Koike's background may be a lie.
The support of Hirotada Ototake has made it more challenging for her to appear in the public eye.
Mr. Ototake, a candidate for Tokyo's 15th district in the House of Representatives with the "Koike seal" (C) Nikkan Gendai
Kojima's new testimony is a significant blow to Koike.
She is "participating" in the Tokyo 15 ward by-election, which will be held on April 16 and open for voting on April 28. Still, the re-emergence of allegations of academic fraud casts a shadow throughout the election.
The governor led the campaign for a writer, Hirotada Ototake.
At his press conference on August 8, he displayed posters with photos of Ototake and the governor in various places in the press conference room. Although he is an independent, Ototake has the "Koike seal" on his name. The governor supports Ototake during the election period and tries to make his presence felt by securing the election.
She had planned to use this as a springboard to the gubernatorial election in the summer, but the latest news is a bitter blow.
It has become more difficult for her to appear as a public supporter.
Her rumored entry into national politics is probably dead in the water," said a source involved in metropolitan politics.
Supplementary elections will also be held in Nagasaki's Ward 3 and Shimane's Ward 1.
Kishida's own party, which must rely on Governor Koike to avoid a "three-way tie," has lost its chance.
The Liberal Democratic Party had difficulty fielding candidates due to the backdoor money scandal.
Nagasaki chose not to run.
Shimane is the only conservative kingdom that has decided to field a candidate, but the situation is already hopeless.
To avoid 'three defeats,' he devised a strategy to pick up a de facto 'win' in Tokyo by taking a joint step with Ms. Koike and supporting Mr. Ototake. However, Koike's allegation of academic fraud is a definite downside, and the possibility of losing all three rounds has increased," said a source close to the prime minister's office.
Neither Prime Minister Kishida nor the "A Woman Acting Like an Emperor" has any way out.
2024/4/7 in Kyoto