Bunmei Ibuki

Bunmei Ibuki
伊吹 文明
Speaker of the House of Representative of Japan
In office
26 December 2012  21 November 2014
Monarch Akihito
Preceded by Takahiro Yokomichi
Succeeded by Nobutaka Machimura
Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
In office
26 September 2006  26 September 2007
Prime Minister Shinzō Abe
Preceded by Kenji Kosaka
Succeeded by Kisaburo Tokai
Personal details
Born January 9, 1938
Kyoto, Empire of Japan
Political party Liberal Democratic Party of Japan
Alma mater Kyoto University

Bunmei Ibuki (伊吹 文明 Ibuki Bunmei, born 9 January 1938)[1] is a Japanese politician. He is a Member of the House of Representatives serving the constituency of Kyoto Prefecture, 1st district, where, as of October 2006, he has been elected eight times.[1] He was the Secretary General of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party from 2007[2] to 2008.[3] In 2008, he was briefly Minister of Finance.

He was born in Kyoto to a family of textile wholesalers who had operated the business since the Edo period. He graduated with a BA from Kyoto University's economics department in 1960. At Kyoto University he was a member of the tennis club. Upon graduation Ibuki became a bureaucrat at the Ministry of Finance. He was dispatched to the Japanese embassy in London in 1965, where he stayed for four years.[4]

Ibuki entered politics in 1983 at former Finance Minister Michio Watanabe's behest. He is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and has served in a variety of government positions, including Minister of Labour and National Public Safety Commission chairman.

He was appointed Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology on September 26, 2006 as a part of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe's first cabinet. In this position, he promoted the controversial revision of the Fundamental Law of Education. He was subsequently appointed as Secretary-General of the LDP in September 2007;[2] less than a year later, he was replaced in that position by Taro Aso and was instead appointed as Minister of Finance.[3] He is known for his knowledge of finance and tax and welfare policies.[5] He held the post of Finance Minister for less than two months, however, and was replaced by Shōichi Nakagawa in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Taro Aso, appointed on September 24, 2008.[6]

On 26 December 2012, Bunmei Ibuki was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan. He presided over the day of his inauguration, the election of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe.

Ibuki's interests include: go, rakugo, dining tours, tennis, and kimono. A gourmet, he published a book of essays on home cooking. He is also a fluent English speaker[5] and a believer of Tenrikyo.[7]

Ibuki is member of the openly revisionist lobby Nippon Kaigi,[8] and affiliated to the fundamentalist shinto lobby Shinto Seiji Renmei Kokkai Giin Kondankai (神道政治連盟国会議員懇談会).

Honours

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Prime Minister of Japan official website - "Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology", retrieved 24 September 2007.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Fukuda appoints Ibuki as secretary-general, Tanigaki as policy chief", Mainichi Daily News, 24 September 2007.
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Fukuda overhauls Cabinet / LDP executive shakeup also elevates Aso to party No. 2", The Yomiuri Shimbun, 2 August 2008.
  4. Ibuki's official website (Japanese), retrieved 24 September 2007.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Japan Times, "Fukuda's new lineup", August 3, 2008.
  6. "Aso elected premier / Announces Cabinet lineup himself; poll likely on Nov. 2", The Yomiuri Shimbun, 25 September 2008.
  7. http://www.jcp.or.jp/akahata/aik07/2007-04-09/2007040914_01_0.html
  8. Nippon Kaigi website - 5 years: nipponkaigi.org/voice/5years - 10 years: nipponkaigi.org/about/10years
  9. Decoraties Staatsbezoeken Japan en Republiek Korea - website of the Dutch Royal House

External links

House of Representatives of Japan
Preceded by
N/A
Representative for the Kinki PR block
2009–
Incumbent
New district Representative for Kyoto 1st district (single-member)
1996–2009
Succeeded by
Tomoyuki Taira
Preceded by
Mikio Okuda
Isaji Tanaka
Eiichi Nagasue
Hiroko Fujiwara
Katsuhiko Takeuchi
Representative for Kyoto 1st district
1983–1996
Served alongside: Katsuhiko Takeuchi, Eiichi Nagasue, Masaru Umeda, Mikio Okuda, Hiroko Fujiwara, Yukio Takemura, Keiji Kokuta, Seiji Maehara, Yuzuru Takeuchi
District eliminated
Preceded by
Takahiro Yokomichi
Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan
2012–2014
Succeeded by
Nobutaka Machimura
Political offices
Preceded by
Yutaka Okano
Minister of Labour
1997–1998
Succeeded by
Akira Amari
Preceded by
Osamu Nishida
Minister of State, Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission
2000–2001
Succeeded by
Jin Murai
New title Minister of State for Disaster Management
2001
Preceded by
Kenji Kosaka
Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
2006–2007
Succeeded by
Kisaburō Tokai
Preceded by
Fukushiro Nukaga
Minister of Finance
2008
Succeeded by
Shoichi Nakagawa
Party political offices
Preceded by
Shizuka Kamei
(Kamei faction)
Chairman of Shisuikai (Ex-Kamei→Ibuki faction)
2005–
Incumbent
Preceded by
Taro Aso
Secretary General of the LDP
2007–2008
Succeeded by
Taro Aso