Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may be summoned to parliament for questioning by lawmakers amid a row over a possible violation of election funding laws, several government and ruling party sources told Reuters on Thursday. The ruling bloc is arranging to summon Abe on Friday for questioning at steering committees, the sources said on condition of anonymity. Tokyo prosecutors on Thursday handed a summary indictment against Abe’s secretary, Hiroyuki Haikawa, but had decided not to press charges against Abe, domestic media reported. Prosecutors had been building a case against the 61-year-old over unreported funds involving as much as 40 million yen ($386,210). Abe had appeared for voluntary questioning on Monday about the issue and again denied his involvement, media said.

Source: bd News24 December 24, 2020 06:56 UTC