On July 9, the former manager of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, Masao Yoshida, who was responsible for directing the operations to bring the disaster under control after the nuclear accident, passed away. DPJ President Banri Kaieda paid his respects to Yoshida in a comment to the media on the same day, saying, “As the manager of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, Yoshida really did everything that he could after the accident occurred. I spoke to him for the first time via satellite link on the evening of the day of the accident through to dawn of the next day, right in the midst of that terrible accident, and I feel that certainly there is a sense in which Japan was saved thanks to his efforts. Along with the rest of the Japanese nation I sincerely mourn his passing, and pray that he may rest in peace.”

At the time of the accident Kaieda was serving as METI Minister. Asked by reporters for his impression of Yoshida’s character and work ethic, he responded, “In the middle of an extremely dangerous situation Yoshida was entrusted with on-site responsibility, and he actually proved his worth with this, so I believe he was a figure who symbolized the level of Japan’s on-the-job skills.” “On the morning and evening of each day a teleconference was held between TEPCO’s headquarters and Fukushima Daiichi, and I also took part in that on most days. He used real down-to-earth working man’s language, and disagreed with what headquarters said if he wasn’t convinced about it, and also said things like, ‘You guys don’t get it.’ I really feel he strongly conveyed what he thought and believed to company headquarters.”