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On July 31, the DPJ held an informal meeting of its Diet members.
After recapitulating his results of the past year, Kaieda stated, “Secretary General Ohata noted the results of the past year and a half, especially the results of the past year. Please accept those as facts. It is true, however, that the results are far from perfect; and from that viewpoint I apologize for my shortcomings.” He went on saying, “I contemplated over and over whether or not I should remain in office. Finally, I decided to keep doing my best as President.”
The discussion at the meeting continued for three and a half hours. Opinions were divided between: (1) those who believed that a presidential election should take place before Kaieda’s term ends; and (2) those who believed that the Party currently needs to overcome divergence inside the Party, and therefore, a presidential election did not need to be conducted ahead of schedule. Following the discussion, Chair Masayuki Naoshima of the General Assembly of DPJ Diet Members asked the President to comment, and Kaieda once again expressed his resolve to carry on as President.
After the meeting, Kaieda held a press conference, and stated, “As the largest opposition party, the DPJ has to acknowledge and understand the wariness, distrust, and complaints of the people.” He went on to say, “I have been trying, to the best of my ability, to revitalize the DPJ and I will redouble my efforts going forward.”
Kaieda also revealed that he would swiftly work on the amendments to the presidential election regulations (proposed by the DPJ Revitalization Panel) and organize basic ideas by the end of September. This was decided by the Extraordinary Executive Board held immediately after the meeting. In response to a question regarding the relationship between the regulatory amendments and the timing of the presidential election, Kaieda answered, “Amendments to the regulations and when the election is held are separate matters.”
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