World

New Japanese P.M. Put To The Test

April 2, 2000 / 7:32 PM EDT / AP

In selecting Yoshiro Mori as the country's new prime minister, Japan's ruling party had hoped to end a succession crisis created by the sudden collapse of Keizo Obuchi.

But on Mori's first day in office, it appeared the crisis was anything but over.

Opposition leaders and major newspapers Thursday demanded that Mori call snap elections to prove his mandate, voters seemed to see him as a stand-in and rumors were rife that his fellow Liberal Democrats were already jockeying to be next in line.

Mori, a former trade minister, was installed as prime minister Wednesday with a solid majority of votes in both houses of Parliament, replacing Obuchi, who has been in a coma since suffering a massive stroke over the weekend.

Obuchi remained on life support Thursday at Tokyo's Juntendo hospital, said chief Cabinet secretary Mikio Aoki. Obuchi's wife, Chizuko, and three children were with him, but his brother returned home, reportedly because it appeared Obuchi's condition could stay the same for some time.

As soon as it became clear that Obuchi's condition was grave, Liberal Democratic Party officials rallied behind Mori, the party's second-in-command.

Pledging to stay his predecessor's course, Mori has retained all of the ministers in Obuchi's Cabinet for his new administration and vowed to emphasize Obuchi's economic and political reform initiatives.

His top priority, he said, will be to nurse Japan's budding economic recovery and boost private consumption, long considered the central weak spot.

"I must continue to keep Prime Minister Obuchi's thoughts in mind," Mori said as he began his first day in office. "That is very important to me."

Among Mori's first official acts was a brief telephone conversation with President Clinton and a meeting with a visiting Chinese Communist Party leader.

But outside the premier's official residence, storms were brewing.

Though Mori has a solid record as a leader within the ruling party, he has a relatively weak Cabinet portfolio. He's never been foreign or finance minister, and many analysts see him as highly vulnerable to rivals within his party.

"He is not knowledgeable on foreign policy or the economy," said Fukuji Taguchi, a political scientist at Tokyo's Ritsumeikan University. "He doesn't have much leadership ability, and often makes controversial comments."

Opposition party leaders, meanwhile, strongly criticized the manner in which Mori was chosen, pointing out that it was the convenience of the ruling party and not his accomplishments as a statesman that won him the nomination.

The opposition could not block Mori's election because the Liberal Democrats' majority in Parliament assures their leader of being installed as prime minister.

"We are pressing for elections as soon as possible," said Ichiro Nakayama, an official with the Democratic Party, Japan's largest opposition group.

He said that would probably be in June, after budge-related bills have been passed.

Elections for the lower house of Parliament must be held by October. Though Mori has said he wants to deal with policy issues first, most analysts now believe he will likely have to call the elections before world leaders arrive for the G-8 summit in July.

Opinion within the ruling party appears to be split.

While some support Mori, others believe they can capitalize on a sympathy vote if elections come soon.

Still, Mori's public support looked shaky, with many voters angry over the failure of party leaders to disclose Obuchi's hospitalization for nearly a day.

"I don't think the government should have kept it as a secret," said Keiko Yoshida, 40, a Tokyo bank worker. "Things were changing while we had no idea."

Virtually all major newspapers ran editorials today demanding Mori call elections to prove his administration's mandate.

"Although he climbed the political ladder successfully in terms of factional politics, his mettle as a political leader is untested," said Asahi, one of Japan's largest newspapers.