Aso set to juggle key party posts in run-up to poll
Prime Minister Taro Aso may reshuffle the executive lineup of his Liberal Democratic Party within days in preparation for a Lower House election that he could call soon, sources said.
He is also considering naming new members to his Cabinet to relieve two ministers of the multiple portfolios they have been holding after resignations of their colleagues, the sources said Friday.
The steps are apparently intended to shore up the administration and buoy its sagging popularity before he dissolves the Lower House to announce a snap election.
Aso told a news conference Thursday that he will dissolve the chamber "in the not-so-distant future."
The comment was taken as indicating that Aso might dissolve the Lower House before the Tokyo metropolitan assembly election to be held July 12.
It is also apparently aimed at checking calls among some LDP lawmakers for a party presidential poll to be held ahead of schedule so Aso could be replaced before the Lower House election.
An LDP defeat to the opposition Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan) in the Tokyo contest would fuel calls for him to step down.
But it remains to be seen whether Aso will actually go ahead with the reshuffle due to opposition from within the ruling coalition.
If Aso goes ahead, a new lineup may be announced immediately after a ceiling on fiscal 2010 budgetary requests is decided Wednesday.
The focus is on whether Secretary-General Hiroyuki Hosoda, Policy Research Council Chairman Kosuke Hori and General Council Chairman Takashi Sasagawa will be replaced.
Makoto Koga, chairman of the party's Election Strategy Council, will likely be retained.
Among names suggested for the post of secretary-general are Yoshihide Suga, a close aide to Aso who now serves as Koga's deputy, and Yoichi Masuzoe, the high-profile health minister known for his eloquence.
While Aso denied any intention to reshuffle his Cabinet during a news conference Thursday, he is nevertheless expected to name new ministers.
Finance Minister Kaoru Yosano now serves concurrently as a minister in charge of financial services as well as economic and fiscal policy.
Communications minister Tsutomu Sato also holds the posts of National Public Safety Commission chairman and a minister in charge of Okinawa and the Northern Territories.
If Aso dissolves the chamber around July 2 or 6, as some LDP members speculate he may, a Lower House election will likely be held Aug. 2.
A dissolution after the July 12 Tokyo contest will likely set the Lower House ballot on Aug. 9 or later.
Some within the ruling bloc welcomed Aso's plans for personnel changes and an early dissolution while others criticized the strategy.
His reshuffle plans could backfire as they clearly are aimed only at winning the election, a former Cabinet minister of the LDP said.
Secretary-General Hosoda stressed that the party wants to pass key bills before the Lower House is dissolved. New Komeito leader Akihiro Ota said the junior coalition partner wanted now to focus on the Tokyo assembly election.
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