Tokyo Government loses majority

Press, 7 December 1976, Page 8

Tokyo Government loses majority

NZPA-Reuter Tokyo Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, discredited by the Lockheed bribes scandal and weakened by factional feuds, has lost its majority in the Diet (Parliament).

The semi-official Japanese Broadcasting Corporation announced yesterday that Sunday’s poll had robbed the L.D.P. of its 21-year-old majority. The L.D.P. won 249 of the Lower House’s 511 seats.

Tire Socialists gained 123 seats, the Buddhist-oriented Komeito (Clean Government Party) 55 seats, the (anticommunist) Democratic Socialists 29 seats, the L.D.P. splinter group, the New Liberal Club, 17 seats, the Communists 17 seats, and Independents 21 seats.

The defeat marked a turning point in Japanese politics, and may pave the way for eventual coalition government for the first time since 1947.

Striking gains made by middle-of-the-road Opposition parties and a major set-back for the Communists indicate that Japanese voters are

opposed to radical change. The Japanese Prime Minister (Mr Miki) said the ruling party’s upset was far more severe than he had expected. A glum-faced Mr Miki said the results showed that the Japanese nation sought a new, centrist course in politics, steering clear of extremes.

He also said he believed that the Japanese people would not pardon political corruption, and “It is a fact that the nation was given the impression that the L.D.P.’s self-reflection on the Lockheed affair appeared insufficient.”

Finally, the results had shown that voters were “fed up with the problem of party conflicts within the L.D.P.,” he said. Asked about his future, Mr Miki said he wished to rehabilitate the L.D.P., and

would consult the party leadership. He was expected to issue a statement soon.

The New Liberal Club, a breakaway group of former L.D.P. members, could be a key factor in the formation of a new government. Its leader, Mr Yohei Koono, said his party’s support for the L.D.P. should not be taken for granted. Political analysts said the L.D.P. could probably count on the support of about 12 conservative Independents, which should give it a simple majority but it would still face difficulties getting legislation through House committees under the intricate Japanese committee system.

The L.D.P. has only a small majority in the House of Councillors, the Upper House, for which elections will be held next July. Some analyists thought it possible that an L.D.P. Government would have to go to the country again next year or early in 1978. The former Prime Minister, Mr Kakuei Tanaka, out on bail on corruption charges arising from the Lockheed scandal, was re-elected as an Independent, with a substantial majority. So were most of the other L.D.P. politicians implicated in the Lockheed scandal. Observers attribute their success to the fact that they had looked after their constituents well and fought a life-of-death campaign. L.D.P. members defeated in the election include the Minister of Agriculture (Mr Buichi Oishi) and the Director-general of the Science and Technology Agency (Mr Masao Maeda). A big question mark now hangs over the Prime Ministership. The former Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Takeo Fukuda, who has led the L.D.P. factions working to get rid of Mr Miki, is being blamed for loss of L.D.P. support, and observers say his position as automatic successor to Mr Miki is now seriously in doubt.

The other possibility as leader of the party is the Minister of Finance (Mr Masayoshi Ohira) who was a contender for the job with Mr Fukuda after Mr Tanaka resigned two years ago. Japanese analysts are reluctant to speculate on who will emerge as Prime Minister.