Japanese Opposition Submit No-Confidence Motion Against PMJapan's four main opposition parties on Monday evening submitted to the House of Representatives (lower house) a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori's cabinet.The motion, submitted by the Democratic Party of Japan, the Japanese Communist Party, the Social Democratic Party and the Liberal Party, is expected to be voted on at a lower house plenary session Monday night. If the motion is passed, Mori's cabinet must resign, unless the prime minister dissolves the lower house within 10 days to call a snap general election. The opposition parties would normally be unable to get the motion passed in the lower house, where the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)and its two coalition partners hold a majority, but this time they have a chance to pass the motion as leaders of two key LDP factions have said they will vote in favor of the motion. Koichi Kato and Taku Yamasaki, two leaders of the LDP's "rebel" factions, have moved to oust Mori on ground of his poor popularity. The two leaders have said they will vote in favor of the motion despite a decision by the LDP leadership to expel them if they insist on doing so. If most of the two factions' 64 members follow them, the motion will be passed. Mori, 63, became prime minister in April, succeeding the late Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, who suffered a stroke. Public support ratings for Mori's cabinet have dropped to below 20 percent in recent polls. |
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