Opposition backs off on BOJ, insists on poll
Japan's opposition leader signaled yesterday his party was likely to approve the government's latest nominee for central bank chief, but he called for an election to break a wider political gridlock.
Democratic Party leader Ichiro Ozawa's comments suggested that an end was in sight to a tussle over who to appoint as Bank of Japan governor, which has embarrassed the government ahead of a G7 meeting in Washington on April 11.
Ozawa has made no secret of his desire for an early poll for parliament's powerful lower house in the hope of ousting the long-ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), and on Sunday he made his pitch in the clearest terms yet.
The political deadlock that has followed since the opposition won control of the upper house of parliament last year led to the first vacancy at the top of the Bank of Japan (BOJ) in 80 years.
Last week the stalemate also blocked the extension of a gasoline tax earmarked for road construction that the Democrats argue symbolizes the LDP's wasteful spending on vested interests.
"Various problems have emerged and the only solution in a democracy is to seek a mandate from the people," Ozawa said in an interview with private broadcaster Fuji TV. He made similar comments on public broadcaster NHK the same day.
"It depends on the degree to which the people's consciousness swells up, but our goal is to see an election as soon as possible, before the (Group of Eight) summit (to be hosted by Japan in July). But at the latest, there must be an election within the year," he added.
Many pundits say Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, his popularity in tatters and his grip on his own job shaky, is unlikely to risk an early election that would almost certainly see the ruling bloc lose seats, if not its lower house majority.
No lower house election needs be held until September 2009.
But other analysts say Fukuda, or his successor, could be forced to seek a mandate to try to break the deadlock that is foiling policy formation in the world's second-biggest economy.
Fukuda is now racing to fill the top BOJ post before a G7 meeting this week where the focus will be on gyrating global markets and concerns about a US recession.
Ozawa, whose party has faced criticism in domestic media for being obstructive, indicated the Democrats were likely to approve acting BOJ Governor Masaaki Shirakawa to take the job permanently if, as expected, he is nominated today.
But he said many Democrats would object to tapping Hiroshi Watanabe, a former vice finance minister for international affairs, for the post of deputy governor.
Agencies
(China Daily 04/07/2008 page6)
