JAPAN’S FORMER finance minister Shoichi Nakagawa, who was ridiculed across the world earlier this year when he appeared drunk and incoherent at a G7 meeting, has been found dead in his Tokyo home.
Mr Nakagawa was discovered face down yesterday morning on his bed, which police said was encrusted with dried vomit stains. Although the veteran Liberal Democratic (LDP) politician was known to be depressed and taking sleeping pills, police say suicide was “unlikely”.
His death, aged 56, has stunned a party still reeling from being dumped from office after more than 50 years of almost unbroken rule. “I am so deeply shocked that I have no words,” said former prime minister Taro Aso, one of Mr Nakagawa’s closest political allies.
A member of parliament for 25 years, Mr Nakagawa was humiliated during Japan’s August general election when he became one of the biggest LDP scalps claimed by the triumphant Democrats (DPJ). The loss of his seat in the northern district of Hokkaido destroyed a family power base built up by his politician father Ichiro, who killed himself in 1983.
Commentators interpreted the defeat as electoral punishment for his performance at a February meeting of finance ministers in Rome. Mr Nakagawa was caught on TV slurring, nodding off and failing to understand reporters’ questions. Mr Nakagawa’s confused features came to stand in for the crumbling edifice of the LDP – and the political failure of Mr Aso, who had appointed him, ignoring his history of heavy drinking.
Mr Nakagawa initially blamed a cold remedy for his grogginess but stepped down soon afterwards, saying it “would be better for the country if I quit”.
Despite the loss of his seat, many colleagues expected Mr Nakagawa, who was once tipped to become prime minister, to stage a comeback. “He would have played an important part in Japan’s future political scene,” said former chief cabinet secretary Takeo Kawamura.
A former agriculture minister and leading LDP backroom player, Mr Nakagawa was one of the party’s brightest stars when Mr Aso gave him the twin portfolios of finance and financial services. The appointment came as Japan began grappling with the fallout from the collapse of Lehman Brothers, and to the surprise of few who knew of his erratic history, he crumbled under the strain.
Police said they will conduct an autopsy. Local media said there was no evidence of a struggle, or any sign of a suicide note.