Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, seeking to soothe voter outrage over political corruption that contributed to a devastating election loss over the weekend, has sacked his scandal-tainted farm minister.
Politicians and analysts said today's dismissal came too late to help improve the image of Mr Abe - who has vowed to stay on despite the drubbing that lost his coalition its majority in Japan's upper house.
Japan's Agricultural Minister Norihiko Akagi speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's residence in Tokyo today
But with no appealing candidates to replace him and polls showing public opinion split on whether he should go, the wounded leader looked likely to limp along for now.
Mr Abe also has the backing of a huge coalition majority in the more powerful lower house of Japan's parliament, as long as he can keep his party on side.
Mr Abe accepted the resignation of Agriculture Minister Norihiko Akagi, who had been dogged by media reports over discrepancies in his political funding records since he was appointed in June, following the suicide of his predecessor after another scandal.
"There were various reports about me in the media and this affected the election," Mr Akagi told reporters. "It is undeniable that this was one reason for the defeat of the ruling coalition. I apologize deeply."
Mr Abe had come under fire during the election campaign for defending Mr Akagi and other cabinet members who made missteps, and some lawmakers from his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) said his move now was ill-timed.