Japan's new PM moves into 'haunted' house, sleeps well

Dec 14, 2021 | News On Japan

Dec 14, 2021 (buzz.ie) - Japan's new prime minister has spent the first few nights in his official residence in Tokyo, becoming the first Japanese leader in nearly a decade to live in the so-called "haunted" house.

The historic house is located close to the prime minister's office complex, where Japan's ruling party conducts its business but for the last nine years, it has been lying idle as previous prime ministers chose to live elsewhere.

Asked how he was settling into the new residence when emerging from the house this morning, prime minister Fumio Kishida said he "slept well". When asked about the ghosts, which reputedly haunt the residence, Kishida said "so far, I have not seen (any)."

The official residence has a bloody history. It was built in the years after Tokyo recovered from a devastating earthquake in 1923 which killed tens of thousands and levelled large swaths of Japan's capital. In 1932, naval officers stormed the house and assassinated then-prime minister Tsuyoshi Inukai.

A few years later, it was once again the setting for more murder and bloodshed. Five people were killed, but the prime minister at the time survived by hiding in a wardrobe. The ghosts of the slain are thought to haunt the official residence.

The stately home has been extensively refurbished and remodelled and costs taxpayers in Japan nearly $1.5 million per year to maintain but has been overlooked by the last two prime ministers of Japan. The current prime minister said he would be moving in so as to be nearer to his workplace and because he also wanted to cherish his time with his family. The residence is only a few minutes by car to the prime minister's office.

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