TOKYO: IZUMI Kenta, head of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, called on Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio to dissolve the House of Representatives for a snap election, during a Diet debate between party leaders on Friday.

Izumi questioned Kishida’s handling of political reform efforts in the wake of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s “slush fund” scandal, and urged the prime minister to face the people’s judgement in a general election.

“I will focus on producing results,” Kishida, also president of the LDP, responded. “I am not thinking about anything else.”

The parliamentary debate between party leaders was the first since June 2021, before Kishida took office.

After the passage earlier on Wednesday of a bill to revise the political funds control law following the LDP scandal, Kishida emphasized the need for political funds, saying, “There are obviously costs to politics.”

Regarding so-called policy activity funds, he said, “We will use them based on a system created with a balance between freedom of political activity and the people’s right to know.”

Kishida also called on the CDP leader to “respond responsibly” to constitutional reform.

JIJI Press