Irregular Remark Affects Mayoral Election

Fumiaki Matsumoto stepped down as State Minister of Cabinet Office on Friday. He was harshly criticized by the opposite parties on his irregular remark in Plenary Sittings of House of Representatives the previous day. It is broadly recognized that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe immediately fired him without defending his colleague in his Cabinet. So, why?

Chairman of Japan Communist Party Kazuo Shii made his question to Prime Minister on consecutive accident of United States Force in Okinawa. US military helicopters had been causing serious uneasiness of the people in Okinawa by making emergency landings or dropping a cockpit window on an elementary school. The sudden yelling of Matsumoto from his seat to Shii was so improper that the opposite parties accused him. “So, how many died?” Matsumoto had loudly said.

Newspapers did not report that next day. The news came out after Matsumoto submitted a letter of resignation that was accepted by Abe. “My irregular remark invited a misunderstanding that it was alright as far as no one died,” he told to the reporters and apologized to the people in Okinawa and Japan. No one did not misunderstand his remark in the House, but realized how the lawmakers with Liberal Democratic Party were discriminating Okinawa.

Matsumoto must have had no idea about how the people in Okinawa is living with deep concern on their security brought by US Forces. “An attack helicopter suddenly touched down on a heliport in our village,” told Headman of Tonaki Village where AH1Z made an emergency landing few days before, “and how did we see that? We cannot understand the idea of drawing metaphor of a death at all.” Takehiro Kamiya, principal of the kindergarten where a part of US helicopter was found on the roof, asked “Doesn’t Japanese government make no action before having a death?”

It was highly strange for Abe to immediately fire his colleague in the middle of criticism from the opposite party. Abe supposedly made that decision with concern of negative impact on the mayoral election of Nago City, where US new military base was building in Henoko district, on February 4^th. Abe administration puts high priority on defeating incumbent mayor Susumu Inamine who firmly opposes to the construction of new base.

Abe straightforwardly apologized on the inappropriate remark of Matsumoto in the Diet discussion. “I will make my best to reduce Okinawa’s burden of military bases, standing by the sentiment of the people,” told Abe. But the overwhelming sentiment of the people in Okinawa is that they do not need it around, anyhow. According to the poll of Asahi Shimbun, Inamine and the candidate of LDP and Komeito are in a close race.