Opposition lawmakers ended an 11-day Diet boycott Wednesday and bashed Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi for causing parliamentary confusion and compiling an expanded, bond-dependent 85 trillion yen budget for fiscal 2000. During the day's Lower House plenary session, Yukio Hatoyama, leader of the Democratic Party of Japan, described Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi as a horrible, authoritarian, conceited man who has shattered the democratic rules of the legislature. "Prime Minister Obuchi, you are the very man who corrupted this nation," Hatoyama told the session. "The Obuchi coalition will bring about the destruction of democracy and of national finances and (fiscal and administrative) reforms," he said, calling on Obuchi to immediately exercise his right to dissolve the Lower House so voters can be heard. Obuchi countered by saying the political stability that the ruling coalition brings will undoubtedly benefit the nation, adding that the triumvirate has never ignored Diet rules. "I understand that it is a Diet rule to listen to (government) policy speeches and speak fairly and squarely," the prime minister said in the plenary session packed by lawmakers from both camps. Obuchi argued that it is the opposition parties who voluntarily left the Diet, which he said should be lawmakers' main arena for airing their views to the public. Hatoyama and other opposition lawmakers were making their first appearances at the Lower House plenary session, following a mediation plan offered Tuesday by Lower House Speaker Soichiro Ito. The opposition camp maintained a united front in boycotting all Diet proceedings since Jan. 25 to protest the ruling triumvirate's railroading of a bill aimed at reducing the number of Diet seats. Tetsuzo Fuwa, chairman of the Japanese Communist Party, and Takako Doi, president of the Social Democratic Party of Japan, joined forces in criticizing Obuchi for what they described as a "money-scattering" budget with gigantic pork-barrel public works. Hatoyama criticized Obuchi for "turning a blind eye" to the nation's deficit-ridden fiscal condition. Japan's debt will stand at 645 trillion yen, or 5.12 million yen per person, as of March 2001. Since he took office, Obuchi has added fuel to this fire by issuing deficit-covering government bonds worth 84 trillion yen, including those to help finance the fiscal 2000 budget, he added. "Prime Minister Obuchi's so-what attitude (toward fiscal reform) leaves me dumbstruck. He even calls himself 'the king of debt,'" Hatoyama said. Obuchi maintained that the economy is still on a recovery path, and his priority is having the fiscal 2000 budget approved by the legislature. Hatoyama also queried Obuchi about a rumor alleging one of his secretaries illegally obtained 4,000 shares of NTT DoCoMo now valued at 2.5 billion yen. "The magazine report is groundless," Obuchi replied. "It is regrettable that (Hatoyama) asked me this question, raising a falsehood to the level of an allegation."
