What can be done to realize constructive and tense Diet debates? It is desired that the government, the ruling and opposition parties sincerely debate issues in the Diet.
A general interpellation session on the supplementary budget for fiscal 2017 has started at the House of Representatives' Budget Committee.
Regarding bills related to work style reform that the government will submit to the Diet, Akira Nagatsuma, acting leader of the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, criticized a plan to expand the discretionary working-hour system. "[The plan] would remove the upper limit on overtime work. It's a foregone conclusion that deaths from overwork will increase," he stressed.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe denied Nagatsuma's assertion, saying: "Some surveys show that employees' working hours under discretionary working-hour systems are shorter than those of ordinary workers. Various work styles are desired."
The discretionary working-hour system, which deems a predetermined number of hours to be the time worked by an employee, is applied to those who are working as a specialist or in the planning section. Although the system cannot be applied to all kinds of employees, there are more than a few occupations in which people can achieve better results in a short span of time than by aimlessly working overtime.
It is hoped that in-depth Diet discussions will be facilitated to promote well-balanced work style reforms.
Nagatsuma demanded the resignation of National Tax Agency Commissioner Nobuhisa Sagawa over the issue of the sale of state-owned land to Moritomo Gakuen.
When he was chief of the Finance Ministry's Financial Bureau, Sagawa replied to a question in the Diet that the sale of government-owned land was "appropriate," and he denied having held price negotiations with the school corporation. However, the Board of Audit raised doubts about the price at which the plot of land in question had been sold. The existence of internal documents prepared by the ministry, which can prove price negotiations were held, have been brought to light.
Better questions needed
Finance Minister Taro Aso also rejected the idea that Sagawa needs to resign, saying he is "suited" for his position. The prime minister just said, "It is essential to continue explaining [about the matter] properly."
The CDPJ has demanded Sagawa appear before the Diet. The Finance Ministry should make efforts to continue offering careful explanations about the issue, including Sagawa's attendance at the Diet and a correction to its earlier replies to questions.
Regarding the resignation of Cabinet Office State Minister Fumiaki Matsumoto, Abe apologized, acknowledging his responsibility as the one who appointed Matsumoto to the position. Matsumoto had jeered during a lower house plenary session about U.S. military aircraft's forced landings in Okinawa Prefecture, shouting, "How many people died from that?"
His remark was a seriously inappropriate one made in disregard of the sentiment of residents of the prefecture. Abe had every reason to effectively remove Matsumoto from his position.
The prime minister emphasized his efforts to "brace myself for the task of grappling with various policy issues, including a reduction in Okinawa's base-hosting burden." It seems that the government and the Liberal Democratic Party have already become arrogant and lax in discipline because of the party's sweeping victory in last year's lower house election. They must seriously reflect on their present condition and hold the reins of state.
The ruling and opposition parties agreed on the allocation of time for their respective interpellation periods at the lower house Budget Committee, with 33 percent of the total time alloted to the ruling parties and 67 percent for the opposition parties. Compared with the time allotments in last year's special Diet session, there was a slight increase in the time apportioned to the opposition bloc.
It is important for the opposition parties to enrich the substance of their questions, instead of solely raising persistent doubts about scandals and repeating similar questions.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 30, 2018)
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