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2009/04/18
Kan campaigns in Nagoya, calls for creation of new regional model
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On April 18, DPJ Acting President Naoto Kan participated in a campaign rally in Nagoya city, together with DPJ member of the House of Representatives Shoichi Kondo and DPJ members of the Nagoya City Assembly. In his speech, Kan called for Nagoya to be proactive in initiating the creation of a new regional model in which local residents play an active role.
Kan expressed his expectations for the DPJ-backed candidate in the Nagoya mayoral election, saying “I would like [the candidate] as the representative of the local people, to take the helm for a new era.” He said that a person who could take the part of the taxpayer in scrutinizing the use of tax money, and who could consider whether that money could be refunded was an appropriate municipal leader. Kan went on to point out that the head of the municipality would play a significant role in local government from now on, saying, “Municipalities will compete with each other, with their leaders in the vanguard of the fight.”
Kan went on to refer to a debate that had taken place over 30 years ago in his home district of Musashino City, over whether to build community centres or public halls in the locality. He said that after a great debate, it had been decided to build community centres run in a kind of informal management style in various locations around the city, and that the local inhabitants were able to use the facilities based on certain predetermined rules, adding that this was “one model for a new type of participation by local residents.”
Kan went on to refer to the fact that from now on, increasing numbers of retirees, who had finished with work and childrearing but were still in the prime of life, would be active in local communities, and expressed the hope that a new type of participation by local residents could be created, stating, “I would like to see these people take on important responsibilities such as community safety and creating networks to ensure that elderly people living alone do not die a lonely death. This need not require utilising tax money, but can come about through their initiatives and their active participation.”
Kan finished his speech by calling for the people of Nagoya to support a democratic philosophy that would consider how to use tax money from the standpoint of the taxpayer, ensuring that there was no waste, and that would encourage spontaneous participation by communities and local residents.
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