Key figure in Japan land scandal to testify in parliament March 27

TOKYO: Former Japanese tax agency chief Nobuhisa Sagawa, a key figure in a cronyism scandal that has sparked a political crisis for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, will be summoned to testify in parliament on March 27, a ruling party source told Reuters.

Abe's support ratings have dropped sharply since the finance ministry said it had altered records relating to a discounted sale of state-owned land to school operator Moritomo Gakuen, which had ties to Abe's wife, Akie Abe.

Opposition lawmakers have been calling for Sagawa, who headed the division that submitted the documents before he became tax agency chief in July, to testify in parliament. Sagawa resigned this month.