On April 15, DPJ Diet Affairs Committee Chair Yoshiaki Takaki spoke at a meeting of the DPJ Diet Affairs Committee held inside the Diet building. He stated, “The second half of the Diet session is now underway. There is a plethora of important pieces of legislation on the agenda, such as labor legislation, farming cooperatives reform legislation, and national security legislation. We have already been seeing productive debate in the various committees, but I would like to ask you to ensure that we continue to engage in thorough discussion in order to stress the presence of the DPJ.”
Takaki also commented on proposals to reform the Political Funds Control Law, saying, “We have petitioned the ruling parties requesting that the various parties’ proposals be discussed in the House of Representatives Special Committee on Political Ethics and Election Law. I would like to make sure that the public understand the DPJ proposal to revise the Funds Control Law. The ruling parties are not at all eager to see change on this issue, and so I would like us to bring this fact to light.”
Takaki also referred to the national security framework currently being discussed by the ruling parties, commenting, “It is disgraceful that such important discussions should take place behind closed doors, without the participation of the Japanese people or of the Diet, and moreover that these [internal discussions] should have been held to coincide with the Prime Minister’s visit to the United States, without there being any explanation or debate in the Diet prior to his visit to the U.S.”
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