Japan's Merged Opposition Party Decides Top Posts


Japan's merged opposition party decides top posts

Edano Yukio, the inaugural leader of Japan's newly expanded opposition Constitutional Democratic Party, has revealed his choices for party executive positions.

The original CDP will officially merge with another opposition party, the Democratic Party for the People, on Tuesday.

A handful of independent opposition members will also join the expanded party, which will be the largest opposition party.

Edano spoke to reporters on Monday and revealed the outline of the planned executive lineup for the merged party ahead of its inaugural meeting on Tuesday.

He said he will appoint Fukuyama Tetsuro as Secretary-General, Izumi Kenta as Chairperson of the Policy Research Council, and Azumi Jun as Diet affairs chief.

Fukuyama and Azumi served in the same positions in the original CDP. Izumi also held the same position in the DPP before the merger, and he was Edano's challenger in the leadership race for the newly expanded party.

58-year-old Fukuyama has been elected four times as an Upper House member from Kyoto. He served as deputy chief cabinet secretary in the administration of the then-Democratic Party.

Fukuyama handled the response to the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan, along with Edano, who was the chief cabinet secretary at the time.

Edano apparently aims to manage the expanded party in a stable manner by keeping most CDP executive members, and is also trying to maintain stability within the party by appointing some members from the DPP to top posts.