Liberal Democratic Party heavyweights are busying themselves with appointments for key party positions coming up in September. The main focus is the selection of the secretary general. The post, which takes charge of the party's affairs on behalf of the prime minister, is a testament to a political figure's power.
-- Open-door policy
The fourth floor of the LDP headquarters building in the Nagatacho district, Tokyo, is the only place with red carpet in the building. The secretary general's office is located on one corner of the floor. On the wall is a piece of calligraphy reading "collective strength," written by former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka. Incumbent LDP Secretary General Toshihiro Nikai, who regards Tanaka as a political mentor, put up the calligraphy. The mentor's words overlap with the philosophy of Nikai, who runs the party using a wealth of experience and his connections with a wide range of people.
Diet members, senior officials of ministries and agencies, prefectural governors and others visit the office one after another. In 1966, when Tanaka was secretary general, he began keeping the door open, although it had previously always been closed. Since then, the office has had an open-door policy and former Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita, who also served as secretary general, went so far as to say "the secretary general's office is a pedestrian paradise."
The frequency of people coming and going is viewed as a barometer of the secretary general's centripetal force, and Nikai continues the tradition, saying, "Anyone can come in." If he can keep the post until Sept. 8, he will be the longest-serving LDP secretary general, surpassing Tanaka.
-- Effectively pre-prime minister
The Party Constitution stipulates that the secretary general assists the president and executes party affairs. In the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, the president serves as prime minister. Thus, the secretary general, as No. 2, is the de facto leader of the party, possessing authority on personnel affairs, elections and fundraising.
The biggest task is to prepare for elections. The secretary general must prepare the party for elections anytime by making various arrangements behind the scenes, so that the prime minister can exercise the right to dissolve the lower house at any point. Former Secretary General Shin Kanemaru became a legend when he made the LDP ready for dissolution-led elections under the Yasuhiro Nakasone administration in just a few days and led the party to a landslide victory.
The post of secretary general, which has enormous power, has been called the "gateway to the prime ministership." Former Prime Ministers Tanaka, Nakasone, Takeo Miki, Masayoshi Ohira and Takeo Fukuda rose to power after they served as secretaries general. Of the past 24 LDP presidents, 12 had served as secretaries general before taking up the top position.
In the September reshuffle of the party's executive positions, a preliminary skirmish has already begun for the successor to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
The faction of Policy Research Council Chair Fumio Kishida wants him to aim for the post of secretary general. Meanwhile, Nikai, who is eager to stay in the post, has recently approached former LDP Secretary General Shigeru Ishiba, a rival of Kishida. A party source said, "Nikai may want to let Kishida know he may support Ishiba in a 'post-Abe' race, depending on Kishida's move."
-- Two types
Sadao Okushima, who died in 2017, was a former chief of the secretary general's office who had worked for the LDP since its inception. In a book, he classified secretaries general into two categories: the "engine type" that leads the party with actions, and the "adjustment type" that is compassionate toward others.
A typical example of the engine model is Tanaka, who was called a "bulldozer with a computer" for his elaborate planning and bold actions. Ichiro Ozawa, who became the youngest to take the office at 47, is also an engine type. He is currently a member of the Democratic Party for the People.
Keizo Obuchi and Yoshiro Mori, among others, are the adjustment type. Obuchi, who was described as "Obuchi of the nice character," would telephone anybody when he was prime minister. Mori is said to have given his allowance to party employees who were depressed after the LDP became an opposition party, during a year-end party.
When Abe became prime minister for the second time in December 2012, he appointed Ishiba, Sadakazu Tanigaki and Nikai as secretaries general. Ishiba, who traveled around the country for elections, and Nikai, who helped Abe win the party's presidential election for the third consecutive time, are considered engine types by LDP members, while Tanigaki, who was moderate and seen as dovish, is considered an adjustment type.
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