Agriculture Minister Steps Down with Gaffe

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Taku Eto, stepped down, after making gaffe on his receiving gift of rice from his supporters, during the time when the people have been suffering from shortage and high price of rice. Former Minister of Environment, Shinjiro Koizumi, immediately succeeded the minister of agriculture. However, it is still skeptical that Koizumi can manage to settle down the rice price.

“I have never bought rice, because my supporters give it to me. I have rice in my food stock as much as I can sell it,” said Eto in his speech in Saga on May 18th. After news media reported his words, Eto apologized his careless speech and retreat it. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba disciplined Eto, but refrained from discharging him from agricultural minister.

 

The opposition parties took Eto’s gaffe as his indifference about people’s hardship, losing access of rice, which is the staple food for the Japanese. It was an unexpected move for Ishiba that five opposition parties – Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Japan Innovation Party, Democratic Party for the People, Japan communist Party and Reiwa Shinsengumi – agreed on approving a non-confidence resolution against Eto. Although those five parties do not have a majority in the House of Representatives, the resolution may pass the house with a few additional votes of other small parties.

 

Urged by integrated action of the opposition parties, Ishiba changed his mind and immediately replaced Eto. The remainder of current ordinary session of the Diet is less than a month. The opposition parties are considering to submit a non-confidence resolution against Ishiba at the end of session. If Ishiba had missed handling of Eto’s gaffe, it might encourage the opposition party to take harder stance against Ishiba administration and ignite submission of the non-confidence resolution against Ishiba. If the resolution is approved in the House of Representatives, Ishiba will have two options: resignation or dissolving the House.

 

For the reasons why he appointed Koizumi to the successor of Eto, Ishiba raised Koizumi’s experience, insight and passion for reforms. Koizumi was formerly the head of Agriculture and Forestry Division of LDP Policy Research Council, leading reform of agricultural co-operatives in Japan. It is unsure whether Koizumi can manage the shortage and price inflation of rice, which requires close cooperation between the government and agricultural co-operatives.

 

With resignation of Eto, rice policy came out at the center of politics. Eto’s gaffe generated public frustration against Ishiba administration. It became difficult for the opposition parties to support policies of Ishiba administration before election of the House of Councillors in July. One focal point in the Diet is whether the opposition parties will be united to pass a non-confidence resolution against Ishiba.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Amendment of Local Autonomy Law

The House of Representatives started discussion on revision of the Local Autonomy Law, which would vest the national government a power to instruct local government in an emergency. It may change the relationship between the national and local government, which has been recognized as equal. The opposition parties oppose the amendment, arguing that it would give the national government an excessive power.   With the Meiji Restoration, the national government abolished the feudal system, introducing modern governance. However, its autonomy was not sufficient. The governor of each prefecture was appointed by the national government. The local governments subordinated to the national government. It was as late as 2000 when  the Comprehensive Decentralization Law  was enacted and the relationship between the national and local government was defined as equal.   The national government found inconvenience in the relationship between the national and local government, when ...
Read more

Request for Final Nuclear Disposal Site

Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry requested Genkai Town, Saga, to accept “literature survey” for building a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste. Genkai is going to answer within this month. If it accepts, it will be the third place to accept that survey, following two places in Hokkaido. Main reason to accept the survey is supposed to be subsidy from the national government.   Japan has no final disposal site. Among all 54 reactors in 17 nuclear power generation plant, 12 reactors of 6 plants are operating. The rest of them are not in operation, some of which are determined to be decommissioned. Used nuclear fuels are stocked in each plant, 　 or have sent to a reprocessing plant in Rokkasho, Aomori. There are two plans to stock nuclear wastes in the intermediate facility for disposal, one is already built and another is still in negotiation.   Nuclear Fuel Final Disposal Act in 2000 determines to bury nuclear waste in the underground. Literature survey, ...
Read more

Death Penalty Demanded on Criminal of Arson

On the historically brutal case of arson, the public prosecutors demanded an ultimate penalty to the offender. In the trial on the arson and murder in Kyoto Animation in 2019, the prosecutors requested death penalty on the defendant, Shinji Aoba. The lawyers of Aoba argued that the court should avoid sentencing death penalty. The judgement will be passed next January. Aoba was indicted as putting fire after pouring gasoline in the building of Kyoto Animation (Kyoani), a studio producing animation works, and killed 36 staffs and injured 32 on July 18 th , 2019. In the trial, Aoba argued that he could not tolerate Kyoani, because it had stolen his novel story in its works. Aoba later apologized to the victim’s families that he had done too much and regretted it.   In the closing argument in Kyoto Regional Court, the prosecutors demanded death penalty for Aoba, because the number of victims were extremely high in the history of criminal trials in Japan. “It is hard to describe about h...
Read more