My opinion of this week(527)F
Disclose the contents before throwing into garbage box
Prime Minister Sinzo Abe appointed Tokuhiko Akagi to Minister of Agriculture,
Forest and Fishery who succeeded the late Minister Toshikatu MatuokaB
By the way, the new Minister is incidentary another hereditary Diet member whoes
father is Munenori Akagi, former Minister of Agriculture and Forestry some years
ago. I don't mean to say any of such hereditary cases are no good but it is
obvious that there are so many hereditary diet members in the present political world.
The capability of this new Minister is not unknown yet. His capacity will
be questioned in many ways from now on. But I have had some doubt about
what he said at his first press conference. He mentioned possibility of
dissolving Japan Green Resources Corporation. He continued to say that
it is the instruction from Prime Minister Abe to study the possibility to
dissolve the Corporation as soon as possible.
Although I do not disagree with the principle concept to dissolve the
Corporation which conduced such serious scandals since they were born,
it seems that the new Ministry is asked to disclose all sort of misconducts
of it own at first. They will be asked to disclose all sort of facts
about their misconducts before disseverment.
A certain good reconstruction plan can only be made after the disclosure
of all sort of facts about their scandals which happened inside of this
Ministry and Japan Green Resources Corporation.
The new Minister also mentioned the necessity of considering the jobs of
management level and general workers in the Corporation in connection
with the disseverment of the Corporation. It is fine to do so. But some
of such good plan must be created only after studying basic problems with
the current corporation.
The fundamental step is to refine the objective of the present corporation.
Why is it necessary? How can they improve the organization to attain the objectives?
Many of such answer can be acquired after investigating the facts and problems
what are going on in the current organization. They should not mention
disseverment of the present organization without doing so at first.
The same thing can be said about the disseverment of Social Insurance
Agency proposed by Abe Cabinet. The issue of imperfect insurance records
of 50 million people is so serious. They should at first clarify and
confirm all facts about them. Some fundamental measures can be prepared
only after the through study about what is going on in the present
organization.
2007/6/2
Tadashi HAYASE
My opinion of this week(528)
Foundation of Pension Account Book
People of Japan were shocked to hear the news that more than fifty million
payment records of pension insurance fees are missing at Social Insurance
Agency office. The government and ruling parties promised to investigate
all of those cases and to clarify the reason why this happened at the agency.
They said there are several reasons why this happened pointing out several
steps and actions the agency took in the past years. But any of such
explanation is virtually useless.
As many general publics answered to the interviews by mass media, such
kind of big mistakes in office work procedures would never happen at any
private firms' offices. Workers at Social Insurance Agency have not
being done their office works without following very basic office
procedures.
Any of such serious mistakes would never be remedied just by dissolving
the present organization as ruling parties suggested. The same thing may
happen again if they do not take any of those basic measures. All
opposing fronts are against to dissolve Social Insurance Agency first without
searching background why such mistakes had happened. It seems that majority
of people think the same way according to the recent result of public
opinion survey.
In connection with this move, Democratic Party of Japan announced Friday
to found Pension Account Book replacing the present Pension Book to avoid
the same mistakes which will happen in the future. The party decided to
make it as public premises i.e. Manifesto in coming House of Councilors
Election in July.
The present Pension Book describes only very basic data such as name and
birth date of participant, and the date of participation. The new Pension
Account Book will start recording all payment data of insurance fees and
probably recording all payment data later on when the participants start
receiving pension money.
The idea must have been proposed by Yasuo Tanaka, former Governor of
Nagano Prefecture as far as my understanding is concerned. Democratic
Party of Japan may propose the idea as common premises as opposition
front in coming election.
Pension Account Book is just the same as Account Book we use for bank
account at banks and account at Japan Postal Agency. Users of all of
those account books have had no problems at all on records for what
they deposit and spend from time to time.
Introducing the same system for pension fee payment seems to be
difficult but I think it is the only way to avoid any of such recording
problems in the future when Government start any of new schemes.
The new organization will be able to learn how those accounting book
system works at banks and Japan Postal Agency. They can establish a
certain new computer system in corporation with private firms and
public offices all over the country.
I would like to support Democratic Party of Japan to make this Pension
Accounting Book system as a Manifesto in coming election. It is very
easy to understand for any people and very practical from any point of
views.
2007/6/9
Tadashi HAYASE
My opinion of this week(529):
A concrete idea of Pension Record Book
The election of House of Representative will be made soon in July.
Liberal Democratic Party and Democratic Party of Japan announced their
manifestoes for coming election and are now preparing to win the election
based on their manifestoes.
Manifesto did play much importance in the general election of last
fall due to former Prime Minister Koizumi's poor election style in
which only privatization of post office became a key issue for the
election.
Pension plan was one very important issues as well to be debated in
the last election but the issue was not discussed so much due to
Koizumi's election tactics. That was very unfortunate thing about Japanese
politics and for Japanese people.
Several serious problems on recording system of pension plan have been
disclosed recently. More than 50 million pension records are missing
at the office of Social Insurance Agency. Several other serious
problems have been disclosed one after another and the basic revision
of pension plan and their management system become one most important
issue for coming election.
Tow major parties are now asked to present their manifestoes on this
issue in some what concrete way. Any general and abstract approach
on pension issues will not be accepted by people at this time.
Since pension recording issues were disclosed, the reaction and
counter measures Abe Cabinet and ruling parties took were not
necessarily quite appropriate. They said they would question the
responsibility of successive ministers of Welfare Ministry in the
past including Naoto Kan, deputy president of Democratic Party of
Japan. They also criticized workers' morale and working style in
the Agency insisting that is another background for such poor office
management in the Agency.
Without talking much about the responsibility of poor management,they
blamed public labor union exists in the Agency. All ruling front
tried to do is to transfer their administrative and management
responsibility to someone else such as successive ministers of
Welfare Ministry and labor union in the Agency. It doesn't make sense.
Abe Cabinet and ruling front submitted the bill to dissolve the Social
Insurance Agency suggesting to make a new privatized organization.
Opposition fronts including Democratic Party of Japan opposed the bill
insisting that that will not solve any basic recording problems.
Majority of people of Japan seem to think the same way according to
the recent public vote. They are looking for some good and concrete
answer for this complicated and serious issues.
The creation of Pension Record Book replacing the present Pension Book
suggested by DPJ in manifesto seems to be a good concrete answer
in this respect. The new book for all participants of pension plan
records all payment records of insurance fees and all receiving records
of pension later on. It is something like deposit book people have for
bank accounts.
I believe this is really a good idea to be introduced to avoid any
further confusion in the future. In along with the introduction of
such pension management system, it is absolutely necessary to revise
the present pension scheme basically.
It is requested that the total grand design concerning pension plan
is argued thoroughly in the coming election in July. This may be
last chance for this country to make a good pension plan in the long
run.
2007/6/16
Tadashi HAYASE
My opinion of this week(530)
Extension of Diet session for 12 days
At the last stage of the present Diet session, Abe Cabinet and ruling
front decided to extend the session for 12 days. Prime Minister Abe
insisted that he would like to pass all of those pending bills such
as fundamental education laws, pension relation acts and bill of national
public officer which prohibits golden parachute from public office to
private or semi public corporation, and so on, because those bills are
so important to improve the life of people in Japan.
His assertion is obviously not right. His intension is to recover some
points in popular vote in which only 30% of people are now supporting
his cabinet due to a series of gaffes which occurred recently especially
to missing pension records issue at Social Insurance Agency. The election
of House of Councils is near at hand in July and he took this action
preparing for it.
Not only opposition fronts but also some group of ruling fronts are against
the extension of diet session especially from diet members of the House
of Councils. Mass media also criticized it.
Such political schedules, the diet session and the election has been decided
before. All diet members and people related with politics have worked in
accordance with this schedule.
It is not only the political people who are affected by this action. More
importantly , general public will also be affected very much in many ways
by this change. The date for election polling was set on July 22 at first.
Now the date is set for July 29. "What's wrong with it?" Yes, it obviously
makes a kind of big difference between the two.
July 22 is just about the time when summer vacation is starting at school.
But July 29 is just in the middle of summer vacation not only for the
family with kids who are planning to take some outgoing trips but also for
young people who have no kids are planning their own trips by taking paid
vacations . It is a good vacation time. Is it good polling time?
I am personally affected by this change. I already have a plan to going out
for a trip on July 29. I cannot go to poll on that day. Should I go absentee
vote? May be. I really wish to go for election at this time.
But why do we have to make such arrangement? There must be millions of people
who must do the same troublesome thing in all over the country. Most people
would not do it.
Mass media and politicians are all talking about the effect of the extension
of diet session just about political parties and politicians But the serious
effect is on the polling behaviors about general people. Prime Minister Abe
underestimate this fact very seriously from my point of view.
I do wish that Abe Cabinet would loose another ten points of supporting
rate by making this silly decision at this time.
2007/6/23
Tadashi HAYASE
My opinion of this week(531)F
Unfair labor practice: Instruction to return summer bonus
Kiyoshi Murase, Director General of Social Insurance Agency, said to all
management people and workers in the Agency to return some parts of summer
bonus paid to them recently to show their feeling of sorry for misconducts
happened in their office. Most of top and middle management people and
some workers followed to the instruction. Some workers refrain from
returning bonus for it should be done only on a voluntary basis.
In connection with this move, Yasuhisa Shiozaki, Secretary General of Abe
Cabinet issued a statement yesterday at the news conference. He said
the new born organization will not rehire any of those old workers who
refused to follow the instruction to return some parts of summer bonus at
this time. According to the plan to reform the Agency, all employees will
be fired at once without any exception. The new agency would rehire some
of those old employees if they are good all right. They would not rehire
some of those who are were found out no good. Shiozaki indicated this
stance.
I already pointed out that that kind of procedures itself to fire all
people when they dissolve the Agency involves some problem. It may against
to some fundamental labor laws in Japan which define some basic right of
workers concerning employment. How can they fire all workers in the agency
at once without any specific reason? How are all general workers in the
Agency are responsible for what happened in various stages of failures
in their organization? I wrote about this doubt in my BLOG on June 24.
For argument sake, let assume that the Agency Reform Law which was
passed at the diet at this time justifies the action to fire all
workers at once in connection with the disorganization of the Agency.
Is it justified to make it a rule to decide some are rehired and some
are not. More specifically, Secretary General Shiozaki meant to say that
some one who returned summer bonus would be rehired but some who did not
return bonus would not be hired.
I was quite surprised to read this comment. His statement is obviously
very wrong. What he said is against the very important principle of labor
laws. His statement forced workers to follow very unfair condition to
keep employment in a organization. It seems to be a typical example of
unfair labor practice from my point of view.
I believe Shiozaki's statement will present a serious argument in coming
election in July. I do hope there will be many appropriate criticism
against series of mismanagement by Abe Cabinet on this critical issue
concerning the disorganization of Social Insurance Agency.
2007/6/30
Tadashi HAYASE
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