My opinion of this week(654):
A new born diet starts
After main hall diet session last week upon the birth of Hatoyama Cabinet,
Budget Committee Sessions at two houses started on Tuesday. Since NHK
broadcasted the whole Budget Committee Sessions at two houses through morning
to evening, I had a chance to watch some major portion of those session. I
would like to make some summary comments on them.
A big difference between the new session and sessions in old days is that
bureaucrats who played major role in the past virtually disappeared in the
new session. The process of past session was something like this. Bureaucrats
at each ministries concerned who work for cabinets in power gained lists of
questions to be made at committee sessions at two houses by opposition
parties.
Those bureaucrats brought back those list of questions to their
offices and used to prepare answer to be made by ruling cabinet members at
committee sessions. Question and answer session have been made mainly by
reading those scenario written by bureaucrats at each ministries as far as
answer parts are concerned. The debate like that was not quite interesting
and exciting at all at any rate. Many of those answers were not really
the one which reflect the intention and opinion of lawmakers but tend to
reflect intention of bureaucrats concerned with those important issues for
people. In addition, bureaucrats in high positions play answer parts on
behalf of lawmakers in many occasions. Many bureaucrats in various fields
attend those question and answer sessions at diet in the past.
After the birth of Hatoyama Cabinet, Democratic Party of Japan announced
their basic policy to eliminate those works by bureaucrats at diet session.
All answers are to be made by lawmakers by themselves. No bureaucrats
are allowed to answer on behalf of cabinet members.
I personally had some big concerns if this new rules really work. But it
really works fine as far as I observed those question and answer sessions at
two houses which were held during past week. It was reported that Liberal
Democratic Party viciously refused to let Hatoyama Cabinet Office know the
list of questions to be made at budget committee sessions.
Contrary to any of such concerns, Prime Minister Hatoyama and all members of
new cabinet answered back fairly well to any of questions made instantly at
the sessions. They generally answered back appropriately with their own words
and by their own mouse without any memorandums provided by their own staffs
or bureaucrats as in the past. The new rule worked fine as far as DPJ parts
are concerned.
Many of those Hatoyama cabinet members have been trained well that way in
their long days as opposition fronts. They had to prepare those question
documents by themselves and had to stand for questions by themselves. They
could not use bureaucrats in any ways as ruling front lawmakers used in the
diet.
Those rookie lawmakers of LDP seemed to embarrassed with this new system. They
have relied too much on the work of bureaucrats in long years of their
ruling position. Their debate capacity are obviously inferior to that of
new ruling front.
When it comes to evaluation of diet session at this time, the style of
debate is not the whole issue. There exists more serious concerns on the
side of opposition LDP. They still keep making all sort of negative
campaigns against DPJ and Hatoyama Cabinet throughout this diet sessions.
They spent almost 70% of their time to denounce problems of political
money contribution of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama , of Futenma
US Air Base issues and of oil supply at Indian Ocean. I don't say they are
not important issues. They are important but there exists a lot more
very important issues such as medical cares, pension plans, employment
so and so forth which politics should be involved in a short run and in
the long run.
Answering to interviews of TV news show, lot of people expressed with
their disappointment of such shortsighted diet session topics of which
were concentrated on such negative issues. I would like to say to LDP
that they will never be able to gain the trust of people so far as
they just continue the negative campaign against their opponent as they
just did in the last election campaign.
2009/11/7
Tadashi HAYASE
My opinion of this week(655):
Meaning of waste-busting committe
The work of waste-busting committee created by Hatoyama Cabinet to cut a number
of unuseful spending of national budget has started their work on Wednessday.
Three major mass media such as Asahi, Sankei, and Nikei Newspaper wrote and
evaluated the meaning of this budget-slashing team in their editorial on
Thursday. It is natural for mass media to pickup this important topic in their
editorial for it is one of the most important part of political reform to be
made by Hatoyama Cabinet since the change of power happened about two months
ago.
It is interesting to know the difference of opinions of three papers. All
papers pointed out difficulties to negotiate with old fassioned bureucrats
at each ministries to cut a number of conventional budget items contunued
for long years. Sankei is a kind of negative about getting virtual fund to
be achieved by those working groups. Asahi stressed more the importance of
holding such working group sessions which are being made openly in front of
general public while expecting some virtual fruits as well. I appreciated
the stance of Asahi's editorial most of all three papers.
We can easily imagine that waste-busting committees will face a lot of
difficulties to attain their target to gain 3 tririon yen from those works.
It is obvious that they will face a lot of resistance from bureaucrats at
each ministries. But I don't understand why two coalition parties, Social
Democrtatic Party and New People's Party are against some proceedings of
work groups. Another resistances come from some ministers of Hatoyama Cabinet
itself. It is understood in a way for those minsters are bosses of each
ministeries concerned.
Some ministers such as Toshimi Kitazawa, Minister of Self Defense, said, for
instance, that such budget cut works should not be applied to budgets of
Omoiyari yosan (Host Nation Support budget) for US military forces stationed
in Japan. But many said that's not the way it is. Such budget as Host Nation
Support is not sanctuary area for such waste-busting works according to the
statement my by the committee. I agreed with the statement. There should be
no such sanctuary are at all once this waste-cut works started.
When this work started on Wednessday, Prime Minister, Yukio Hatoyama expressed
his expectation that the whole process would work fine. A number of budget
items have been adsvised to be abolished or to be cut by the committee. About
600 billion yen have been found as extra fund piled up at several government
owned firms through the discussion made at several working groups.
But there still exists a lot of complains and criticism among inside and
outside of Hatoyama Cabinet. One big concern and criticism is that a work
group takes only an hour to make a decision on any projects whether or not
they are to be continued , to be abolished or to be reviwed in some ways.
Many bureaucrats criticized the process is so short that they cannot say
enough to maintain their assertion. Prime Minister Hatoyama commented that
it is necessary for the committee to make more polite and deliberate
explanation for any decisions.
I don't disagree with Prime Minister's statement but don't fully support
what he meant to say. The situation is really critical indeed. That is
really a kind of revolutionary process rather than just evolutionary process.
Who ever have tried such process before? It is really a revolutional process
to make such public works openly in front of general citizens. Any people in
the country can watch such deliberation process by online internet if they
want.
I believe that we should put more emphasis on this great advantage rather
than just whether or not there exists deliberate explanation.
I don't see any of such process have ever been conducted in any other
advanced democratic countries in the world. This is supposed to be
a first trial in Japan to test the possibility to pursue direct democracy
which is ideal style of democracy for any democratic countries in the world.
2009/11/14
Tadashi HAYASE
My Opinion of this week(656):
Deliberation of a new eco-point system
Naoto Kan,@National Strategy Minister made a press conference after the
cabinet meeting on November 17th.He said Hatoyama Cabinet would consider
the extension of so called "eco-point system even after March next year when
the system would expire for this system had been found very effective as an
economic stimulus package.
I have already written about the effectiveness of this plan in my BLOG recently
and so I think this government decision is quite right.
The system which had been started by the last Aso cabinet seems to have worked
out extremely effective as an economic stimulus measure for the system has led
to increase the consumption of key industries products such as digital
televisions and hybrid cars and some other ecology products and created
additional consumption of various consumer products and environment related
products through gift points that were given to people when they bought those
eco-points products. It is expected that such system will work to increase
total consumption in double or threefold in the future.
The eco-point system is one very appropriate economic measures started by
Aso Cabinet and it is good idea for the present Hatoyama cabinet to succeed
this eco-point plan. Succession of such measures will bring totally to a good
result for the national economy.
Generally speaking, this eco-point system has not been well understood yet by
people. I personally tried to learn more about it in detail and made a better
understanding about the system. There are several good informative materials
in net including YouTube video and I recommend you to learn more about the
system through those materials.
As to the extension of this policy, government should consider to extend lines
of products to which eco-points are applied than just extension of current
lines of products. There are lots more ecology oriented products in consumer
markets in addition to those products already applied in the plan.
For example, there are lots more products available in the field of housing,
transportation products and so on. Electric vehicles and electric bicycle
rather than conventional engine cars and even hybrid cars are such example.
The government should extend the concept much broader when it comes to
environmental products. Products that help to change social environment or
industrial structures for more energy saving are such examples. Products
that help to improve children reduction issues in many ways, to promote IT
education at school, so and so forth. A good hint seems to exist in the
slogan of DPJ: "The change from the concrete to human being."
In addition to those products listed in the first eco-point system, I would like
to suggest that government should start adding many more number of products
as explained above by cooperative work of ministries concerned such as
Ministry of Economy and Industry, Ministry of Labor and Welfare, Ministry of
Science and EducationAMinistry of@Land and Transportation, and Ministry
of Ecology .
2009/11/21
Tadashi HAYASE
My opinion of this week(657):
The last work of tax projects review team
The tax projects review team of Hatoyama Cabinet started last week to
review a thousands of projects conducted by all ministries concerned
in next year. There existed a number of criticism on the ways and means
on how working team to evaluate various projects to be made by ministries.
Those criticisms are, for example, something like those:"Evaluation time
is only 60 minutes that is too short to discuss such important matter.hF
There are so many people included in evaluation team who come from private
sectors. There is no explanation about why those people are selected as
evaluator.:"No criteria to judge the usefulness about each projects are
shown as standard manual.":"There are several projects which are not be
evaluated by such work of outsiders. How can those outsiders evaluate
some special and professional area which are concerned with foreign
diplomacy, self defense issues, high technology related products such
as super computer, space rocket and so forth."
Some of those criticisms are appropriate in one way or the other. There
will be a lot more arguments about such projects evaluation work by
themselves. But most critics and mass media totally admitted the most
important point of such review work at this time. They say that the most
meaningful point of such evaluation work is the fact that all of such
discussion process session at Icigaya Gymnasium have been opened for public.
A lot of people visit there to watch the process. The sessions have
been broadcasted for all country by internet.
It is the first time that such budget evaluation process made between
Finance Ministry and all ministries concerned in the past have been
opened for public observation at this time. Regardless a number of
criticism on the evaluation work, such open process of budget preparation
is the most important point of all as far as I see it.
There is one other big criticism on the whole evaluation process. Many
say that evaluation process itself is totally controlled by bureaucrats
of Ministry of Finance. It is true that the evaluation discussion start
with the basic briefing by staffs of Finance Ministry concerned with each
projects. They explained various numbers on the budget including all facts
in the past and the present. They add to explain how they evaluate the
effectiveness of the projects from their point of views. Based on such
initial presentation by staffs of Finance Ministry, other evaluator come
from lawmakers and private sectors start evaluating each projects.
Some critics and people of other ministries said that is not appropriate
for the total evaluation is tend to be led by Ministry of Finance after
all through such process.
I don't agree with such argument at all. What's wrong with the staff of
Finance Ministry making such initial presentation for the whole discussion?
The fact and numbers concerned with each budgets are very necessary to
evaluate any projects for evaluation team members at any rate. It is not
the staff of Finance Ministry to make final judgment. The final decision
is made by majority vote by team members in principle. There is no doubt about
the fairness of evaluation system as far as I see it.
But I grinned with the news on Friday when I read internet news article.
The article said the last project the tax project evaluation team picked up
was whether or not the gymnasium where the whole evaluation works were done
in the past ten days or so is worth existing as it is right now. The gymnasium
belongs to Ministry of Finance and the evolution team concluded that
the gymnasium should be abolished or to be sold out to some other private
sectors. It's not the work of Finance Ministry any way.
When this evaluation process starts, there were a lot of criticism among other
ministries. While hundreds of projects were listed up for evaluation targets
from other ministries, there only a few projects listed up from Finance
Ministry.
It is fine for the evolution team has finished their work showing the
possible abolishment of the gymnasium the symbol of the whole meaningful
work at this time.
2009/11/28
Tadashi HAYASE
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