Sayonara

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Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Wednesday he would resign in a month and not run for reelection as leader of his party, ending a three-year term marred by political scandals, CNN reported.

“The easiest way to clearly show that the (Liberal Democratic Party) has changed is for me to step aside,” said Kishida at a press conference in Tokyo.

The announcement came as the LDP faced a series of political scandals that severely eroded public trust, endangering its near-continuous seven-decade rule.

The biggest scandal regarded specific factions of the party and involved millions of dollars worth of undocumented political funds. Parts of the money was allegedly used as kickbacks for lawmakers.

At the same time, senior LDP officials were accused of violating election law and making derogatory comments against minorities.

Kishida tried to contain the scandals, but his approach was criticized by other faction leaders and young supporters, accusing him of scapegoating specific politicians, the Japan Times wrote.

Kishida’s approval ratings reached all-time lows, with one survey showing that 79 percent of Japanese did not support him.

As he stepped down, Kishida took responsibility for the scandals.

Though he did not explicitly back any candidate for his succession, he said he would support whoever wins the party leadership race, hoping they would build a trustworthy “dream team” to serve the Japanese people.

Kishida is Japan’s eighth-longest-serving prime minister since World War II. In his speech, he also noted his accomplishments, including boosting the country’s slow economy and bringing Japan closer to the United States and South Korea.