Arab News Japan

TOKYO: SAITO Tetsuo, the Chief Representative of Komeito, says the reason his party left the ruling coalition with the Liberal-Democratic Party was because the party’s supporters felt it had betrayed their trust.

“Listening to the voices of many members of the public, we observed that there is a strong public mistrust towards politics in response to the LDP’s political funding scandal,” Saito told a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan on Monday. “It was pointed out to us that our endorsements of lawmakers who had failed to properly report their income and expenditures for political fundraising parties had damaged Komeito’s image as a party of integrity.”

This, he said, presented the party with “an existential crisis” that meant it could no longer continue with the status quo. 

Komeito, which is closely associated with Buddhist group Soka Gakkai, gave the LDP the choice of fully investigating the undocumented political funds scandal and taking corrective action or losing its vital partner in the coalition. 

Saito said it was Komeito policy to always hold talks when the LDP changed leadership and did the same after the recent election of TAKAICHI Sanae as LDP President.

“I told her that if these concerns cannot be resolved, we will not be able to form a coalition,” Saito said. The LDP response was that it would start “considering” tightening regulations on corporate and organizational donations but made no attempt to resolve the problem of undocumented political funds.

“They failed to present any direct action that would be taken towards a full investigation or towards fulfilling their responsibility to explain the new facts that have come to light recently,” Saito said, terming the response “inadequate” and prompting the party to end its coalition.

“The world is in a period of division and great confusion,” Saito stated. “We are observing a rise in right-wing extremism and populism, alongside an accelerating trend towards political fragmentation. Stepping back to take a broader perspective and recognizing this as a major turning point, we, as Komeito, are committed to serving the country of Japan as a party grounded in humanism and sensible centrist reform.”

Saito believes it was essential to restore trust in politics and to “conduct responsible governance that transcends division and conflict,” especially in areas such as diplomacy and national security.

“We will work towards the implementation of such policies,” Saito explained. “We will work towards the future of the world. Furthermore, coexisting with foreigners is also something that Komeito places a lot of importance on and was one of the three concerns that we raised with the LDP during the recent coalition negotiations. Recently, we were witnessing a rise in exclusionism and a trend towards sowing division.”

LDP President Takaichi appears to be aligning her policies with those of populist right-wing parties that have blamed foreigners for problems in Japan, which Saito also opposed. “There are people who are using division and conflict as a power source to garner support for themselves,” Saito warned, adding that his party wanted to concentrate on issues such as UN reform, climate change, education, human rights, empowerment of women and youth, and reducing the burden of military bases in Okinawa. 

He also said his party wants to maintain Japan’s war-renouncing Article 9 of its constitution, something that Takaichi has hinted at removing. He added that it was also important to maintain good relations with its neighbors, such as China and Korea “in order to make sure the tensions do not escalate.”