Heat on Abe

The head of a Japanese nationalist school at the heart of a swirling political scandal said yesterday that he received a donation of ¥1 million ($12,750) from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s wife in her husband’s name. Yasunori Kagoike was giving sworn testimony in Parliament. Abe has said neither he nor his wife, Akie, intervened in a sweetheart land deal in which educational group Moritomo Gakuen, based in Osaka, western Japan, bought state-owned land at a fraction of its appraisal price to build an elementary school. Abe has also denied allegations by Kagoike, who has said he would step down as head of Moritomo Gakuen, that Akie had donated ¥1m on the Prime Minister’s behalf. Abe has denied he or Akie intervened in the land deal, or helped the school get accredited. He has said he would resign if evidence to the contrary