Bunmei Ibuki as Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (2006)
Ibuki with Enrique peǹa Nieto (2013)

Bunmei Ibuki (伊吹 文明, Ibuki Bunmei, born 9 January 1938)[1] is a Japanese politician.

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.[2]

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 (1997~98) and National Public Safety Commission chairman (2000~01).[citation needed]

He was appointed Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology on 26 September 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;[3] less than a year later, he was replaced in that position by Taro Aso and was instead appointed as Minister of Finance.[4] 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 24 September 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.[citation needed]

Personal life

  • Ibuki is a fluent English speaker[5] and a believer of Tenrikyo.[7] He is a 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).
  • Ibuki is nicknamed "Ibu-King" due to his enduring political influence despite his now-advanced age.

Honours

References

  1. ^ Prime Minister of Japan official website - "Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology", retrieved 24 September 2007.
  2. ^ Ibuki official website; accessed 24 September 2007. (in Japanese)
  3. ^ "Fukuda appoints Ibuki as secretary-general, Tanigaki as policy chief"[permanent dead link], Mainichi Daily News, 24 September 2007.
  4. ^ "Fukuda overhauls Cabinet / LDP executive shakeup also elevates Aso to party No. 2" Archived 2008-10-16 at archive.today, The Yomiuri Shimbun, 2 August 2008.
  5. ^ a b Japan Times, "Fukuda's new lineup", 3 August 2008.
  6. ^ "Aso elected premier / Announces Cabinet lineup himself; poll likely on Nov. 2" Archived 2008-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, The Yomiuri Shimbun, 25 September 2008.
  7. ^ "６閣僚に「９条守れ」/天理教平和の会、信者に要請".
  8. ^ Nippon Kaigi website - 5 years: nipponkaigi.org/voice/5years - 10 years: nipponkaigi.org/about/10years
  9. ^ 皇居で春の大綬章親授式　伊吹元衆院議長ら１８人 (Spring Grand Ribbon Ceremony at the Imperial Palace, Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Ibuki and 18 others) - website of Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun
  10. ^ Decoraties Staatsbezoeken Japan en Republiek Korea Archived 2014-11-04 at the Wayback Machine - website of the Dutch Royal House

External links

Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Labour
1997–1998 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission
2000–2001 		Succeeded by
New title Minister of State for Disaster Management
2001
Preceded by Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
2006–2007 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Finance
2008 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan
2012–2014 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Secretary General of the Liberal Democratic Party
2007–2008 		Succeeded by