Mori may stick to Obuchi policies

TOKYO, APRIL 5. Japan's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) chief, Mr. Yoshiro Mori, was today elected Prime Minister to succeed Mr. Keizo Obuchi, who has been in coma since he suffered a stroke on Sunday.

Mr. Mori (62), got a convincing majority in both Houses of Parliament.

He bagged 335 of the 488 valid votes at a plenary session of the 500-member House of Representatives (lower House) against the required 245 votes for being confirmed as the Premier. In the upper House, he got 137 of 244 votes.

The acting Prime Minister, Mr. Mikio Aoki, told a press conference today that it was clear that Mr. Obuchi would not be able to resume his duties.

``I had prayed for the Prime Minister's recovery. I will do my best to live up to the nation's expectations,'' Mr. Mori said after being chosen LDP president.

The election was facilitated after the entire Cabinet of Mr. Obuchi resigned yesterday.

Mr. Mori inherits from Mr. Obuchi a legacy no single Japanese leader has equalled - running the Government into an astronomical debt of $ 840 billions in less than two years. Mr. Obuchi once said of himself, ``I am the world's No. 1 king of debt.'' That crown now sits on Mr. Mori's head. How he is going to take that burden is not known and he has made no reference to that so far.

Mr. Obuchi effectively reversed Japan's economic reforms movement and relied essentially on borrowed money - funds raised through issuance of state bonds - instead of cutting down on bonds started by his predecessor, Mr. Ryutaro Hashimoto.

Mr. Mori's policy, according to informed sources, may not be very different from that of Mr. Obuchi's. Besides, the fact that he has retained the previous Cabinet intact, including the Finance Minister, Mr. Kiichi Miyazawa, himself a former Premier, indicates that no major policy change is expected until the elections which may take place either before the G-8 Summit in July or in October.

Mr. Mori has never lost an election to the lower House of Japanese Parliament, Diet, and has held a number of Cabinet posts.

However, he has been found involved in a number of corruption scandals also. In 1988, he was accused of having received 30,000 unlisted shares of Recruit Cosmos company, a scandal that had led to the resignation of the government headed by the then Premier, Mr. Noboru Takeshita.

In 1997, an oil merchant had said he had paid money to both Mr. Obuchi and Mr. Mori.

Mr. Mori's overwhelming consideration in reappointing the previous Cabinet was to ensure stability of policy. The burly politician could scarcely hide his delight as he bowed thanks for his election to fellow lawmakers, but those smiles could fade swiftly as he begins to tackle a raft of problems including pressure to call an early general election to validate his Cabinet.

The new Prime Minister was also apparently eager to avoid any destabilisation owing to the swift handover of power. Mr. Mori, a keen sportsman, quickly underscored his commitment to his new team. ``In rugby, one person doesn't become a star, one person plays for all and all play for one,'' he told mediapersons.

Though he is a political heavyweight in the LDP, Mr. Mori is yet to show his mettle on the international stage.

- AFP, PTI

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