Photo/Illutration Toshimitsu Motegi, secretary-general of the Liberal Democratic Party, at a news conference at the party's headquarters on Jan. 23 (Shinichi Fujiwara)

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s Motegi faction is considering disbanding in the aftermath of a funding scandal that shook the party to its core, sources said.

They added that the faction headed by Toshimitsu Motegi, the LDP’s secretary-general, is expected to make a final decision this week after hearing opinions from member lawmakers.

The powerful Abe, Kishida and Nikai factions, whose former accounting officials were charged Jan. 19 with keeping revenue from fund-raising parties off the books, decided to dissolve.

Of the remaining three factions not implicated in the scandal, the faction headed by Hiroshi Moriyama, chair of the LDP’s General Council, decided to dissolve on Jan. 25, leaving the Motegi faction and the Aso faction at the center of attention.

Motegi was initially cautious about disbanding his faction, which originated from one founded in 1972 by former Kakuei Tanaka, one of the nation’s most influential prime ministers.

But member lawmakers, including Yuko Obuchi, chair of the LDP’s Election Strategy Committee, and Masakazu Sekiguchi, chair of the LDP’s Upper House caucus, announced they were leaving the faction.

Some members have also said the faction should dissolve.

“I will put a period to the Heisei Kenkyukai,” Motegi was quoted as telling an associate, referring to the faction’s official name as a policy group.

The faction is known for producing two former prime ministers, Ryutaro Hashimoto and Keizo Obuchi, as well as Mikio Aoki, former chair of the LDP’s Upper House caucus known as the “don” of the Diet’s upper chamber. Yuko Obuchi is Keizo Obuchi’s daughter.

LDP Vice President Taro Aso emphasized on Jan. 27 that he will maintain his own faction.

“We must further invigorate the (faction’s) role as a policy group, or a place where members study policies,” Aso said in a speech in Iizuka, Fukuoka Prefecture.

He said the only way to restore public trust in politics is for lawmakers to study policies more keenly than before, formulate laws and respond to the trust of the people.

At the Aso faction’s general meeting the previous day, member lawmakers left the decision to Aso on whether to keep the group going.

The LDP’s intraparty factions have traditionally provided funds for member lawmakers to fight elections. They also made recommendations regarding personnel appointments to the Cabinet and the party leadership.

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