The Yomiuri Shimbun
Diet debates between Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and major opposition party leaders, the second of their kind during the current Diet session, were held Wednesday.
Sadakazu Tanigaki, president of the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party who was criticized for failing to land a telling punch during the previous debate, went on the offensive against Hatoyama over the issue of relocating the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture.
Tanigaki told Hatoyama that he should step down or seek a public mandate by dissolving the House of Representatives for a general election if he failed to resolve the relocation issue by the end of May, a deadline the prime minister has set.
In his response, Hatoyama said: "I'll stake my life [on resolving the relocation issue] and will not fail. Please trust the government." As these verbal exchanges indicate, the debate between these two leaders turned out to be held in an atmosphere more tense than the previous one.
During the latter half of the current Diet session, this kind of debate should be held more often, particularly on issues that may affect the very foundations of the nation, such as diplomacy, taxation and national finances.
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Futenma issue up in air
In criticizing Hatoyama on the Futenma relocation issue, Tanigaki said the government had yet to come up with a unified alternative proposal after turning down the existing plan reached during the administration of the LDP-led coalition government, which had won the understanding of the U.S. government and people of Okinawa Prefecture, and then stirring up expectations among the prefecture's residents that their burden of hosting U.S. bases would be eased.
Hatoyama refuted this by saying he already had his own plan in mind, which he said "is as effective as the existing one or even more effective [in maintaining the U.S. deterrence and in easing Okinawa Prefecture's burdens]."
Yet he offered nothing concrete and was far from convincing as he only expressed his determination to conclude the issue as early as possible.
With regard to the falsification of the political funds report of Hatoyama's fund management organization by his former state-funded secretary, Tanigaki called on the prime minister to fulfill his responsibility by explaining the case, as deliberations in the trial have ended.
Hatoyama responded to this by saying, "I will meet the expectations of the public by working hard." What the public is seeking is the truth. The fact that he continues to make such evasions on the ground that the case is still pending in court is unpardonable.
New Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi also took a more confrontational stance toward the Hatoyama administration. This was in stark contrast to the previous round of debate when he only proposed the establishment of an organ on the political fund issue that could be used by the ruling and opposition parties for consultation.
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Cabinet in disarray
While citing examples of disarray within the Cabinet over such issues as the postal reform bill, Yamaguchi lashed out by saying: "The Cabinet is not functioning...It's truly a disappointing Cabinet."
Hatoyama's responses to the remarks of Tanigaki and Yamaguchi were diffuse to say the least, and the instances where the prime minister failed to answer the party leaders' questions were conspicuous. It was obvious Hatoyama was playing for time so as to wrap up the debate as quickly as possible.
In the previous debate, Tanigaki was criticized by members of his own party for failing to land a serious blow on Hatoyama, prompting such senior members as former Finance Minister Kaoru Yosano to call for the party president to be replaced.
This time, Tanigaki seems to have learned from the previous lesson. But nonetheless he failed to rid himself of his tendency to pull his punches.
Voices can still be heard within the LDP that "we can't fight the [upcoming] House of Councillors election under Tanigaki's leadership."
Complaining about the poor management of Diet affairs, young and middle-ranking LDP Diet members are calling for a shake-up of the party's leadership, including Secretary General Tadamori Oshima and Diet Affairs Committee Chairman Jiro Kawasaki.
Tanigaki's leadership will be tested over whether he can rebuild the LDP as a party full of a fighting spirit.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, April 1, 2010)
(Apr. 2, 2010)
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