TOKYO, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is battling low approval ratings, will replace a government minister for the fourth time since he created his current cabinet in August, public broadcaster NHK reported on Monday.
Discussions on a replacement for Kenya Akiba, minister responsible for overseeing the reconstruction of areas hit by Japan's massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011, are still underway, the broadcaster said.
NHK initially reported that Akiba will be replaced by former financial services agency minister Tatsuya Ito, but later corrected that report to say a successor has not been picked.
That's all I can say," Kishida said on Monday when asked whether he planned to replace Akiba.
Kishida also plans to replace Mio Sugita, his Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Internal Affairs, Kyodo reported on Monday citing multiple unidentified government sources.