Word: ohira
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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Both former prime ministers Takeo Fukuda and Takeo Miki have vilified Tanaka and the money politics he stands for, and they have extended their hatred to Ohira. Fukuda and Miki blame the Ohira-Tanaka alliance for depriving them of the premiership on several occasions. Miki also campaigns on a clean government plank, and has urged reforming the system of election for party president to estinguish the potential for bribery that Tanaka exploited so successfully. Tanaka in turn despises Miki as the man who jailed him in 1974 and fought to prosecute all offenders in the Lockheed case...
THESE rivalries erupted in a spectacular display of pettiness, absurdity and irresponsibility during the party elections in the Diet to determine the new prime minister. At one point, the Fukuda camp set up a blockade to prevent Ohira supporters from entering the Diet. Burly Ohira guards smashed the barrier, screaming obscenities into whirring television cameras. Ohira himself blocked Diet votes on the premiership three times, holding out to retain his power while the Diet remained paralyzed. After futile attempts at compromise with Fukuda, Ohira retained his seat by a mere 17 votes in the first runoff premier election in Japan...
With his approval rating down to 17 per cent and fellow LDP members licking their wounds, Ohira tried to restore peace by apportioning Cabinet posts among different factions. But some of his chief rivals refused to accept posts and have stated they will cooperate with Ohira only on a "case by case" basis--a precedent shattering break with Japanese traditions of party discipline. Ohira is also bound to Tanaka, who exacted a stiff fee in Cabinet posts for his key support. Among others, Ohira appointed Tadao Kuraishi, a Tanaka crony, as Justice Minister, at Tanaka's insistence...
Although Fukuda had also insisted on the appointment, which he hoped would embarass Ohira, Tanaka had other ideas, as Kuraishi soon made clear. Immediately after his appointment, Kuraishi shocked the nation by stating that the suspects were close, friends of his and he hoped they would be cleared. the prime minister is struggling to patch his party together, but still has no takers...
...bitter political infighting that characterized this election and the LDP's shrinking majority signal several political changes for Japan. The election results confirm that the LDP's salad days of dictating policy and setting the national agenda are over. Ohira needs to forge a new coalition of moderate-centrist opposition groups like the New Liberal Club, the Democratic Socialist Party and the Komeito "clean government" party to get legislation through the Diet. But working in this "period of equal balanced forces" requires wily and forceful leadership...