Bunmei Ibuki
Native name伊吹 文明
OfficeSpeaker of the House of Representatives
MonarchAkihito
DeputyHirotaka Akamatsu
Term start26 December 2012
Term end21 November 2014
PredecessorTakahiro Yokomichi
SuccessorNobutaka Machimura
Office 1Minister of Finance
Term start 12 August 2008
Term end 124 September 2008
Prime minister 1Yasuo Fukuda
Predecessor 1Fukushiro Nukaga
Successor 1Shōichi Nakagawa
Office 2Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party
President 2Yasuo Fukuda
Term start 224 September 2007
Term end 21 August 2008
Predecessor 2Tarō Asō
Successor 2Tarō Asō
Office 3Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Term start 326 September 2006
Term end 326 September 2007
Prime minister 3Shinzo Abe
Predecessor 3Kenji Kosaka
Successor 3Kisaburo Tokai
Office 4Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission
Term start 45 December 2000
Term end 426 April 2001
Prime minister 4Yoshirō Mori
Predecessor 4Mamoru Nishida
Successor 4Jin Murai
Office 5Minister of Labour
Term start 511 September 1997
Term end 530 July 1998
Prime minister 5Ryutaro Hashimoto
Predecessor 5Yutaka Okano
Successor 5Akira Amari
Office 6Member of the House of Representatives
Term start 619 December 1983
Term end 614 October 2021
Predecessor 6Isaji Tanaka
Successor 6Yasushi Katsume
Constituency 6Former Kyoto 1st (1983–1996)
Kyoto 1st (1996–2009)
Kinki PR (2009–2012)
Kyoto 1st (2012–2021)
Birth date9 January 1938 (age 88)
Birth placeShimogyō, Kyoto, Japan
PartyLiberal Democratic
Alma materKyoto University

Bunmei Ibuki (伊吹 文明, Ibuki Bunmei, born 9 January 1938) is a retired Japanese politician who served as the Speaker of the House of Representatives from 2012 to 2014.[1]

Early life and career

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]

Political career

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] He is a member of the openly revisionist lobby Nippon Kaigi,[7] 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.

Election history

ElectionAgeDistrictPolitical partyNumber of voteselection results
1983 Japanese general election45Kyoto 1st districtLDP58,059winning
1986 Japanese general election48Kyoto 1st districtLDP51,514winning
1990 Japanese general election52Kyoto 1st districtLDP56,450winning
1993 Japanese general election55Kyoto 1st districtLDP48,893winning
1996 Japanese general election58Kyoto 1st districtLDP63,094winning
2000 Japanese general election62Kyoto 1st districtLDP86,490winning
2003 Japanese general election65Kyoto 1st districtLDP83,644winning
2005 Japanese general election67Kyoto 1st districtLDP112,848winning
2009 Japanese general election71Kyoto 1st districtLDP81,913elected by PR
2012 Japanese general election74Kyoto 1st districtLDP69,287[8]winning
2014 Japanese general election76Kyoto 1st districtLDP73,684[9]winning
2017 Japanese general election79Kyoto 1st districtLDP88,106[10]winning
[11][12][13]

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"[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. ^ 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. ^ Nippon Kaigi website - 5 years: nipponkaigi.org/voice/5years - 10 years: nipponkaigi.org/about/10years
  8. ^ "2012年衆議院議員選挙:時事ドットコム" (in Japanese). 時事ドットコム. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  9. ^ "2014衆院選 | 衆議院選挙 | 選挙アーカイブス | NHK選挙WEB". www.nhk.or.jp. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  10. ^ 日本放送協会. "2017衆院選 | 衆議院選挙 | 選挙データベース | NHK選挙WEB" (in Japanese). www.nhk.or.jp. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  11. ^ "伊吹文明(イブキブンメイ)|政治家情報|選挙ドットコム" (in Japanese). 選挙ドットコム. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  12. ^ "伊吹文明 | 第48回衆議院議員選挙 2017 京都1区". 政治山. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  13. ^ "伊吹文明 | 選挙結果(衆議院) | 国会議員白書". kokkai.sugawarataku.net. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
  14. ^ 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
  15. ^ Decoraties Staatsbezoeken Japan en Republiek Korea Archived 2014-11-04 at the Wayback Machine - website of the Dutch Royal House