The Asahi Shimbun's front page reported that Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru (President of the Liberal Democratic Party) told journalists at the Prime Minister's Office on the 2nd that he would "judge responsibility at an appropriate time, but first, I will do what the people want me to do," and expressed his intention to continue running for office. Based on the party's summary document compiled on the same day for the House of Councillors election, four party officials, including Secretary-General Moriyama, stated their intention to resign.

At the beginning of the plenary session of both houses of parliament, the Prime Minister apologized for the results of the House of Councillors election while reporting the summary document, saying, "It is my responsibility to lose many comrades. In addition, he mentioned the issue of wage increases exceeding high prices, tariff negotiations with the United States, rice issues, and strengthening defense capabilities, and said, 'As a leader, I will show you the way, which is my responsibility.'

Moriyama said at the meeting that he intended to "retire from the position of Secretary-General and take responsibility for the election results." Moriyama also said, "I will leave the decision of whether to step down or not to the President, who has the authority to appoint me." The Prime Minister intended to comfort Moriyama, saying that "irreplaceable people are indispensable." After the meeting, four political research group leaders of the party, including Onodera, Suzuki, and Chairman of the Election Strategy Committee, Kihara Makoto, also conveyed their intention to resign to the Prime Minister.

At the party's House of Councillors election summary committee meeting on the same day, the party analyzed that the "politics and money" issue led to the departure of the Liberal Democratic Party and decided to draw up a summary document, striving to "dissolve the party" to revitalize it. In the subsequent plenary session, 233 members of parliament belonging to the party attended and raised a series of opinions questioning the Prime Minister's responsibility for the House of Councillors election results and party management.

Pros and cons of the special presidential election, confirmation procedure begins

On the 2nd, the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election committee began confirming the pros and cons of implementing a temporary presidential election after deciding on the summary document of the House of Councillors election. This will be the first time that the temporary presidential election procedure is implemented according to Article 6, Paragraph 4 of the party regulations. The members of parliament who agree to implement it will sign and submit the stamped documents to the party headquarters on the 8th, and it is expected to be known on the 8th.

To implement it, the majority approval of 295 members of parliament of the party and 47 prefectural federations (47 people) is required. The names of members and prefectural associations who voted in favor will be published.

In the summary report of the House of Councillors election released by the Liberal Democratic Party on the 2nd, it did not mention the responsibility of Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru (party chairman) and the party executive, but called for "unity" to revive the "disparity between the party and the people's awareness."

However, the rift caused by the Prime Minister's efforts to prolong the government's life deepened, with the party's executive committee, including Secretary-General Moriyama, suddenly announcing their resignation. The unstable mood within the party intensified, and the path to "dissolving the party" became difficult. Mr. Moriyama, the chairman of the general committee who compiled the report, urged at the general meeting, "It is important not to end this reflection with words, but to establish the party's image and strongly demonstrate the overall picture of national administration and future vision to the people."

"My responsibility as president" (Prime Minister). "I am keenly aware of my responsibility" (Mr. Moriyama).

In their speeches at the opening of the general meeting, the Prime Minister and Mr. Moriyama each mentioned their responsibility for the failure of the House of Councillors election, but avoided mentioning it in the report, stating, "It's not about who is wrong, but about the organization" (a party official).

Regarding this, Akira Irie, a member of the House of Representatives from the Asō faction, who called for an early presidential election, complained to reporters after the meeting, "To play a self-cleaning role, we must clearly identify the responsibility of the senior leadership."

The report states that the House of Councillors election caused the Liberal Democratic Party to "drift away" from the younger generation, active generation, and some conservative factions, and lists factors such as the scandal surrounding "politics and money" and inadequate measures against high prices.

Regarding the lack of transparency in the income of factional parties, he pointed out, "We must strictly realize that this is still an undercurrent of distrust toward the party, and reflect on it. Regarding the response to high prices, he recalled that the cash transfer plan promised in the commitment was unable to fully resist the opposition's proposal for tax cuts, and instead took a defensive stance."

One of the reasons for the failure was the government of the "minority ruling party" that held a majority in the House of Representatives, which "shifted the results of policy implementation to the opposition, reducing the opportunity to demonstrate its uniqueness."

The conclusion of the report was that through the dissolution of the party, "I swear to be reborn as a true national party that can gain the trust of the people and live up to the people's trust," but it is not easy to revitalize it under Prime Minister Ishiba's government. The middle-level members of the House of Representatives emphasized, "The first step in revitalization is the Prime Minister stepping down and rebuilding the internal party system."

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1842194104215564/

Statement: The article represents the views of the author.