OSAKA -- Osaka Gov. Fusae Ota announced on Monday that she will not seek a third term in the upcoming gubernatorial election amid criticism over a series of monetary scandals.

"Under the current circumstances, I think it will be impossible for me to run in the election," Ota, 56, said during a press conference at the Osaka Prefectural Government on Monday morning. She earlier notified her support group of the decision not to run in the Jan. 27 poll.

It was revealed last month that Gov. Ota had received a total of 9.81 million yen in lecture fees from a local group of managers of small- and medium-sized businesses. In the same month, financial problems surrounding her support group also surfaced.

On Nov. 18, she drew fire from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito after she gave a banzai pose with a new candidate backed by the opposition Democratic Party of Japan who won the Osaka mayoral election for the first time.

"I have lost the confidence of the Osaka Prefectural Assembly and prefectural citizens. I have consulted with the concerned parties (about the election), but it's a difficult situation," Ota told reporters on Monday.

Earlier on Monday, Ota's secretary, Nobuharu Yamada, told an executive meeting of her support group that she was not running in the gubernatorial race. "Under the current circumstances, the governor decided to drop her candidacy," Yamada said.

Her support group is backed by Rengo Osaka and other business entities, but Rengo Osaka has already decided not to support her in the coming election.

Ota first won the governorship in Osaka in February 2000 after the late former Gov. Knock Yokoyama resigned following an indecent assault scandal. Since then, she has served two terms as governor.

Meanwhile, Shoji Umeda, 57, a lawyer backed by the Japanese Communist Party, has announced his candidacy in the governor's race.

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