- Sadakazu Tanigaki
nihongo|Sadakazu Tanigaki|谷垣 禎一|Tanigaki Sadakazu|extra=born
March 7 ,1945 is aJapan ese politician who served as Minister of Finance in the cabinet ofJunichiro Koizumi . He is currently Minister of Construction and Transport and is serving his ninth term as a member of the Lower House, representingKyoto 's Fifth District.Early life
Tanigaki was born in
Fukuchiyama and attendedAzabu High School . He graduated from the Faculty of Law at theUniversity of Tokyo in 1974, and worked as a secretary for his father, who was Minister of Education. He went on to pass the Japanese bar examination in 1979, specializing in tax law, and he registered as an attorney in 1982 after completing his legal training. ["Japan Times ", "Fukuda's new lineup", August 3, 2008.]Political career
Tanigaki was prepared for a legal career after close to ten years of study, but his father, who represented the second district in
Kyoto , died in 1983. Tanigaki moved to Kyoto to run for his father's seat.He briefly headed the Science and Technology Agency in 1997. Under Prime Minister Koizumi, he served in a number of positions, including the Financial Reconstruction Commission, the National Public Safety Commission, and ultimately as Minister of Finance from
September 22 ,2003 toSeptember 26 ,2006 . Since 2002, Tanigaki has led a minor faction in the Liberal Democratic Party, formerly part of the "Kochikai" faction, with 11 members in the lower house and 4 in the upper house.Tanigaki declared his candidacy for the LDP presidency on
July 28 ,2006 , but came in third place in a three-way race againstShinzo Abe andTarō Asō . Tanigaki was viewed as the "moderate" candidate in the race, mainly due to his foreign policy views: unlike Abe and Asō, he stated that he would not continue visits toYasukuni Shrine if he became prime minister, which made him a more attractive candidate among LDP leaders who sought better relations with China and Korea.On
September 24 ,2007 , Tanigaki was named chief policymaker of the LDP by newly-elected party presidentYasuo Fukuda . [ [http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20070924p2a00m0na008000c.html "Fukuda appoints Ibuki as secretary-general, Tanigaki as policy chief"] , "Mainichi Daily News", Sept 24, 2007.] He was subsequently appointed as Minister of Construction and Transport onAugust 1 2008 . [ [http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20080802TDY01303.htm "Fukuda overhauls Cabinet / LDP executive shakeup also elevates Aso to party No. 2"] , "The Yomiuri Shimbun", August 2, 2008.]Personality
Tanigaki sleeps early and arises early. He engages in stretching excercises and goes on long distance bicycle rides on the weekends to relieve stress. Tanigaki also enjoys mountain climbing and wine. ["
Japan Times ", "Fukuda's new lineup", August 3, 2008.]References
External links
* [http://www.tanigaki-s.net Sadakazu Tanigaki's official website]
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