Abe to dissolve Lower House

September 25, 2017

TOKYO- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced Monday that he will dissolve the House of Representatives, the all-important lower chamber of parliament, to call a snap election.Abe said at a news conference that he will break up the Lower House at the beginning of an extraordinary session of parliament, to be convened on Thursday.

The Lower House election will be held on Oct. 22, with its official campaign period starting on Oct. 10, according to informed sources.

The prime minister said he will seek public verdict on his plan to revise the existing agreement on how the increased revenue from the planned consumption tax hike from 8 percent to 10 percent in October 2019 should be used.

He said he hopes to use some of the added tax revenue to invest in policies for the child-rearing generation and to provide better social security. Abe is planning an LDP campaign pledge to establish a "social security system for all generations" featuring increased support for the child-rearing generation.

The Japanese economy is yet to fully overcome deflation and the threats from North Korea's nuclear and missile development are increasing.

Also to be watched closely is how the prime minister will respond to the criticism from opposition parties that he will break up the Lower House at the very beginning of the parliamentary session to avoid being grilled over favoritism scandals involving Moritomo Gakuen and Kake Educational Institution.

Besides reforming the social security system, Abe is expected to vow to promote his Abenomics policy mix, increase pressure on North Korea and stipulate the existence of the Self-Defense Forces through a constitutional amendment.

"The biggest point is whether the Abe government would be able to win public confidence in its policy measures and achievements over the past four and a half years," said Koichi Hagiuda, executive acting secretary-general of Abe's Liberal Democratic Party.

"It's time to receive voters' verdict on our economic and national security policies," said Tetsuo Saito, election policy head of Komeito, the LDP's partner in the ruling coalition.

Atsushi Oshima, secretary-general of the biggest opposition Democratic Party, noted that Abe promised to make full explanations about favoritism scandals involving Moritomo Gakuen and Kake Educational Institution.

The promise would vanish if Abe dissolves the Lower House at the beginning of the Diet session as reported, Oshima went on. "This is a question of his attitude toward politics."

Akira Koike, head of the Japanese Communist Party's secretariat, said the main purpose of the expected dissolution should be to block debates on scandals.

Hagiuda defended Abe's reported plan to remake the social security system, which has focused intensively on the elderly, into one that provides support to a wider range of the public, including younger generations.

This plan is controversial because it will reportedly require a change in the use of additional tax revenue from a planned consumption tax hike that was set years ago.

"We've discussed a change" in the focus of the system, Hagiuda said. "We want to make an explanation to the public." Jiji Press