Trump threatens 50% tariffs on Brazil if it doesn't stop the Bolsonaro 'witch hunt' trial    Trump praises 'good English' of Liberian president, prompting criticism across Africa    Saudi, Hungarian defense ministers discuss military ties    Al-Rajhi: Cabinet's decision is supportive to most vulnerable groups    King Salman appoints Dr. Majid Al-Fayyad as Royal Court advisor    Alkhorayef emphasizes Saudi Arabia's growing role as global industrial investment hub    Saudi Arabia adopts World Drowning Prevention Day as national health priority    GACA imposes SR2.8 million in fines for 87 civil aviation violations in Q2 2025    Desperate Gaza doctors cram several babies into one incubator as fuel crisis reaches critical point    Total e-messages sent to parties in lawsuits reach over 11.8 million during first half of 2025    3 arrested in assault case in Riyadh    New Property Ownership Law will take into effect in January 2026 Al-Hogail thanks King and Crown Prince for the updated law    HONOR returns to Esports World Cup as Official Smartphone Partner for 2025 The renewed commitment will see HONOR elevate mobile esports competition with cutting-edge AI technologies and industry-leading hardware    Riot Games responds to match-fixing allegations in VALORANT    BLAST responds to BESTIA Visa controversy ahead of CS2 Austin major    Christophe Galtier named NEOM SC head coach ahead of historic Saudi Pro League debut    Michael Madsen, actor of 'Kill Bill' and 'Reservoir Dogs' fame, dead at 67    BTS are back: K-pop band confirm new album and tour    Michelin Guide launches in Saudi Arabia with phased rollout in 2025    'How fragile we are': Roskilde Festival tragedy remembered 25 years on    Sholay: Bollywood epic roars back to big screen after 50 years with new ending    Ministry launches online booking for slaughterhouses on eve of Eid Al-Adha    Shah Rukh Khan makes Met Gala debut in Sabyasachi    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Japan ex-health min to form new party ahead of poll
Published in Saudi Press Agency on 22 - 04 - 2010

Japan's popular former health minister, Yoichi Masuzoe, left the main opposition party on Thursday to form the latest in a string of new groups complicating the outlook ahead of a national election, according to Reuters.
Even as the once-mighty Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) unravelled further, a fresh policy fracas emerged in Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's ruling camp, this time over a plan to revise highway tolls that some critics say would contradict a campaign pledge to make expressways toll-free.
The departure of Masuzoe, 61, who tops opinion polls as the lawmaker voters prefer as next premier, is a blow to the LDP, ousted from power last year after more than 50 years of almost unbroken rule.
But it is uncertain whether the fragmentation of the pro-business LDP helps Hatoyama's struggling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) in an upper house election that it needs to win to smooth policy making as Japan struggles with a fragile economy and bulging public debt.
Support for Hatoyama's government has sunk to around 30 percent in recent polls on doubts about his ability to make tough decisions, including how to resolve a feud over a U.S. airbase on Okinawa island by the end of May.
Even some people in his own party have said Hatoyama might have to resign if he fails to meet his self-imposed deadline.
"It's not good for the LDP. It's not good for the opposition generally," said Koichi Nakano, a professor at Sophia University in Tokyo.
"If it leads to the creation of a new opposition force, it could be a challenge to the Democrats but for now, a fragmented opposition must be good news for them."
Masuzoe, a multilingual former academic and one-time TV commentator, told reporters on Thursday that he would submit a letter of resignation from the LDP later in the day.
Asked what would be his new party's principles, Masuzoe said: "That will be in line with what I have been saying for a long time, including overcoming deflation, clean money politics ... and boosting Japan's competitiveness and status in the world, which were hurt by a weak economy."
HATOYAMA'S HEADACHES
Japanese media were quick to note that lawmakers expected to join Masuzoe's new party did not all share his policy stance. Instead, they include lawmakers from a minor opposition party whose own seats are at risk in the upper house election, expected in July.
Hatoyama's own headaches, meanwhile, are steadily worsening and prospects for a decisive victory in the upper house, which can delay legislation, are slim to non-existent, analysts say.
In the latest sign of policy disarray, Hatoyama told reporters the government would rethink a plan to revise highway tolls that would result in some fees rising, after what Japanese media said was a demand by ruling party kingpin Ichiro Ozawa to alter the proposal because it violated a campaign pledge.
But Transport Minister Seiji Maehara, a former party chief who is often critical of Ozawa, said after a meeting with the premier that the plan would not be changed "at this time".
A former close aide to Hatoyama, who had pleaded guilty to charges of falsifying political fund records, was sentenced on Thursday to two years' imprisonment, suspended for three years. But the court ruling made no mention of involvement by the premier, Japanese media reported.
Media say judicial review panels are set to hand down decisions soon on whether the premier and Ozawa should be indicted in political funding scandals.
Both Hatoyama and Ozawa have denied any intentional wrongdoing, but public suspicions have been a key factor behind the government's falling support rates.
Nor is an exit from the Futenma dilemma in sight.
The premier said on Wednesday he would stick to his end-May deadline on resolving the dispute over where to relocate the U.S. Marines' Futenma airbase on Okinawa, reluctant host to the majority of U.S. forces in Japan.
But opposition has flared in one potential relocation site outside of Okinawa, while Washington wants to stick to a 2006 deal to shift the base to the northern part of the island.


Clic here to read the story from its source.