Japan ex-PM Abe's state funeral cost 1.2 bil. yen, below estimate

The controversial state funeral for former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe cost around 1.2 billion yen ($8.1 million), less than the initially estimated 1.66 billion yen, the Japanese government said Friday.The taxpayer-funded ceremony was held Sept. 27 in Tokyo for Abe, the country's longest-serving prime minister, who was fatally shot while giving an election campaign speech in early July.A month after it decided to hold the state funeral, the government of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in August it would spend 249 million yen to cover the cost of the venue.But the government in early Septe…READ FULL ARTICLE