DPJ lawmaker Edano appointed as administrative reform minister

TOKYO, Feb. 10 Kyodo -
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama on Wednesday appointed Yukio Edano, a Democratic
Party of Japan lawmaker, as new administrative reform minister, aiming to
reduce the burden on national policy minister Yoshito Sengoku, who had
concurrently held the Cabinet post.
Edano, who led a team of ruling bloc lawmakers and experts in eliminating or
reviewing government programs under his predecessor's supervision last year,
plans to launch a new round of waste-cutting efforts once the pending fiscal
2010 budget clears the Diet, he said at his inaugural news conference.
While Hatoyama hopes the appointment will restore people's confidence in the
DPJ, it could affect the delicate balance of power between the government and
his dominant party because Edano belongs to an intraparty group critical of
party Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa.
''I think the DPJ has not necessarily lived up to people's expectations about
its political leadership and the politics it has led and that we must move
quickly, including implementing the second round (of waste-cutting efforts),''
Hatoyama told reporters in the evening. ''By asking Edano to become
administrative reform minister, I want the people to see the DPJ regain itself
as soon as possible.''
Speaking to reporters in the morning, Hatoyama said that Ozawa had said he has
''no problems'' with Edano's appointment during their talks Monday.
An attestation ceremony was held at the Imperial Palace in the morning. The
appointment marks the first addition of a minister to the Cabinet since its
launch last September and has brought the number of its members to 17,
excluding Hatoyama.
At the news conference, Edano said he plans to target independent
administrative agencies and government-affiliated public-interest corporations
when conducting the fresh review of government programs.
''I have more than two months to prepare this time,'' he said. Through the
efforts, ''I will thoroughly review the nature of administration and ways to
use tax money efficiently at the people's standpoint.''
After meeting with Hatoyama earlier in the day, Edano told reporters,
''Carrying out this reform steadily will heighten (people's) hopes and
confidence in the administration.''
''I will work hard to make sure that I can extend the rail that Mr. Sengoku has
laid,'' the 45-year-old former DPJ policy chief added.
As administrative reform minister, Edano will effectively head the Government
Revitalization Unit, a Cabinet Office unit launched by the Hatoyama government
to shake up the nation's budget and administration while reviewing the roles
local governments play.
After meeting with Edano at the prime minister's office, Sengoku told reporters
that the latest arrangement makes his area of duty clearer, noting that
juggling two ministerial posts threatened to leave everything half-baked.
On the timing of the appointment, Sengoku said Hatoyama apparently made the
decision now because the controversy over his funding scandal marked a turning
point with the end of a session in the House of Representatives Budget
Committee this week.
''Apart from the judgments people would make, this is not bad timing for the
Hatoyama Cabinet to carry on its work with its head facing forward,'' Sengoku
said.
Meanwhile, Liberal Democratic Party policy chief Shigeru Ishiba was doubtful
that Edano's appointment would buoy the Hatoyama government, which suffers from
falling public support due to funding scandals also involving Ozawa.
''While I give marks to (Edano's) insight and personality, I don't think he can
buoy the administration, or discover lots of waste and implement a policy that
will help economic growth,'' the senior opposition lawmaker said at a news
conference.
As a member of the ''anti-Ozawa'' camp, Edano has suggested that Ozawa resign
as the party No. 2 over the funding scandal involving his former and current
aides if his explanation of it fails to gain public understanding.
The sixth-term lower house member had been eyed as a special adviser to the
prime minister to work effectively as an aide to Sengoku, but weeks passed
without such an appointment. The delay sparked speculation that he could be
tapped as a senior vice minister of the Cabinet Office in the future.
Sengoku, 64, became administrative reform minister when the current government
was swept to power in September, following the DPJ's historic win in the
general election last summer. He concurrently took the post of national policy
minister from Naoto Kan last month, when Kan replaced Hirohisa Fujii as finance
minister.
==Kyodo