The National Diet building is seen in this file photo taken in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, on Sept. 28, 2017. (Mainichi)

       TOKYO -- Senior officials of ruling and opposition parties engaged in a heated TV debate on Oct. 17 ahead of the Oct. 19 launch of the official campaign period for the House of Representatives election, with the topics of debate ranging from COVID-19 to economic policy.

       The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior coalition partner Komeito are emphasizing their achievements over the past nine years since the launch of the second administration of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The opposition camp, meanwhile, is preparing a united front, with the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) and Japanese Communist Party (JCP) poised to field a unified candidate in each single-seat constituency. The focus will be on how much support each bloc can gain.

       During the Oct. 17 program on public broadcaster NHK, LDP Secretary-General Amari Akira said the LDP-led government would establish a system to get the economy moving using COVID-19 "vaccine passports" and certificates of negative coronavirus test results. Komeito's Keiichi Ishii, Amari's counterpart, also indicated that the government would resume its "Go To Travel" domestic tourism boosting campaign using the vaccine-negative test package.

       Meanwhile, CDP Secretary-General Tetsuro Fukuyama argued that his party had been asking the government since March to launch a new aid program for businesses hit hard by the pandemic, saying, "The government and the ruling coalition are responsible for neglecting (the CDP's proposal) for half a year." He proposed a de-facto income tax exemption for individuals making less than around 10 million yen (about $87,500) a year. JCP secretariat head Akira Koike called for stimulus money for those who have seen their income decline due to the pandemic, as well as for people in the middle class, based on a 100,000-yen ($875) handout for each person.

       Nobuyuki Baba, secretary-general of the conservative opposition Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party), proposed cutting the consumption tax rate from the current 10%, or 8% depending on the products or services purchased, to 5% for the time being. He added that the party would aim for "zero pension insurance premiums to boost consumption." Democratic Party for the People acting leader Kohei Otsuka criticized the government's aid programs for businesses, saying, "Loans don't solve anything. Taxes and social insurance premiums should be reduced or there should be exemptions from payment, rather than extending deadlines."

       Minor opposition Reiwa Shinsengumi leader Taro Yamamoto insisted that Japanese society would collapse unless the budget is raised by the 100-trillion-yen (about $875 billion) level through government bonds. Social Democratic Party leader Mizuho Fukushima appealed for "injecting tax money into medical, nursing care, welfare, pension and education services." Takashi Tachibana, a former House of Councillors member and head of the anti-NHK party, said the best solution to boost the economy is to directly distribute time-limited e-money to consumers.

       The topic of how the government will be operated was also put on the discussion table during the program. If the CDP gains power in the upcoming general election, the JCP will cooperate "in a limited manner as a non-Cabinet partner." Regarding this, the LDP's Amari pointed out that the JCP's stance on the Japan Self-Defense Forces and the imperial system is "extremely negative." Komeito's Ishii also criticized the CDP and JCP's move, saying, "I don't understand how they would be able to work with each other when their views on the challenges regarding the country's fundamentals are different."

       The CDP's Fukuyama fired back, arguing that the LDP formed a coalition government with the now defunct Japan Socialist Party which had maintained that the Self-Defense Forces were unconstitutional. He continued, "On security issues, (our party) holds the Japan-U.S. security arrangement as the core of our policies, and we will create non-Cabinet cooperation with the JCP in a different, limited manner." The JCP's Koike explained that the party doesn't intend to bring its original policies or stance into the government operation, while also stating that the party would maintain the imperial system.

       (Japanese original by Minami Nomaguchi and Kazuhiko Hori, Political News Department; and Tadashi Sano, Digital News Center)

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