Kan rumored to call snap election with energy policy as focal issue

Speculations have been mounting that Prime Minister Naoto Kan may dissolve the House of Representatives for a snap general election, with the focal issue set on the nation’s energy policy in the wake of the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant.

At the outset of a joint meeting of Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) members of both houses of the Diet on June 28, Kan stressed the importance of energy issues, saying, “Where Japan is going to take its energy policy will be the top issue in the next national election.”

Earlier on June 27, Kan did not rule out the possibility of dissolving the lower house if energy-related bills, including a bill to oblige utilities to purchase electricity generated by renewal energy at fixed prices, did not pass the Diet.

These moves have prompted members of both the ruling and opposition parties to speculate that the prime minister may dissolve the lower chamber for a general election with the abandonment of nuclear power generation at stake.

The June 28 meeting of DPJ legislators lasted for about 90 minutes, with a total of 347 members — 253 from the lower house and 94 from the upper house — attending. Kan left the meeting in less than an hour due to official duties.

During the meeting, Kan reiterated that he will resign on condition that the Diet passes the second supplementary budget for fiscal 2011, the renewable energy bill, and a special government bond bill. “I’d like to lay out the direction of the nation’s nuclear power policy in a manner that wouldn’t leave problems in the future during the time left before I resign,” he said.

“That means I’d like to map out the future direction as much as time allows,” Kan added, suggesting that he would not make the achievement of the reform of the nuclear power policy a condition for his resignation.

Referring to a special government bond bill, Kan said, “I believe it is extremely important to clear the bill during my tenure for the sake of the next administration.”

After the prime minister left the meeting, some members questioned if Kan had the dissolution of the Diet in mind. DPJ Secretary-General Katsuya Okada brushed aside such an idea, saying, “There’s no time for us to be dissolving the lower house at the moment.”

A Cabinet member close to the prime minister, however, indicated on June 28 that Kan may be desperate to remain in power, saying, “As the DPJ leadership is attempting to oust Kan, the prime minister may take every possible means to prevent it.”

Those who attended the meeting called on Kan to make clear the timing of his departure and voiced criticism for the recent Cabinet reshuffle, in which the prime minister appointed House of Councillors member from the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Kazuyuki Hamada as parliamentary secretary for internal affairs and communications.

During an opening speech, Okada criticized the Cabinet personnel change, saying, “The appointment of Hamada came when we need to rebuild our relationship with the opposition bloc in order to have the bills (whose passage Kan stakes his resignation on) clear the Diet.”

DPJ Diet affairs chief Jun Azumi also condemned Kan for picking Hamada, saying, “Things are now beyond my capacity.”

Mainichi Shimbun , June 29, 2011
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