Japan PM's ex-aides charged over funds scandal-NHK

The scandal, which has been public knowledge for months, is thought unlikely to force Hatoyama to resign, but the indictments will be another headache for a government which marked 100 days in office on Thursday and faces key decisions on next year's budget and relocating a U.S. airbase.

A sharp slide in voter approval could endanger the premier's grip on his post ahead of an upper house election in mid-2010, in which his Democratic Party wants to win an outright majority to reduce the clout of two tiny but vocal coalition partners.

Opinion polls have shown voters are unhappy with Hatoyama's explanation of the misreported donations, but a majority have said he need not resign over the affair.

There is no suspicion of bribery because the funds, amounting to more than 300 million yen ($3.28 million), were funnelled from Hatoyama's own family fortune, media reports say. The premier has said he will pay any taxes that may be due on cash received from his mother.