Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike at a regular press conference on April 12, Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. (©Sankei by Taisuke Nanjo)
During an April 12 press conference, Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike denied reports of former aides drafting a graduation statement from Cairo University. The reports alleged that she falsified the statement in June 2020, just before she ran for governor.
"I am aware that the article was published," she stated, "but the basic premise is wrong. They allege that I have not graduated, but I have and the university has vouched for this."
Allegations and Defense
Koike has provided similar explanations before and even presented her graduation certificate.
She expressed regret that such articles emerge every election. "Universities are responsible for proving graduation," she emphasized. "Cairo University has confirmed [my graduation] multiple times."
Regarding allegations of her team drafting the statement, she asserted, "The university issued it voluntarily."
An article in the May edition of the monthly magazine Bungeishunju detailed the process behind the statement's purported genesis. In June 2020, Cairo University posted the statement on the Egyptian Embassy's official Facebook page.
Former Environment Ministry bureaucrat Toshiro Kojima claimed in the Bungeishunju article that Koike had sought assistance in drafting the document. At the time, Kojima served as the secretary-general of Tomin First no Kai ("Tokyoites First Party"), where Koike was a special advisor.
Additionally, he pointed out the involvement of other individuals in the drafting process and raised doubts about Koike's graduation.
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(Read the article in Japanese.)
Author: The Sankei Shimbun
