Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, in a "town meeting" with Tokyo residents on Sunday, called for a package privatization of Japan Highway Public Corp. and three other road-related government-affiliated entities. He also proposed a review of the tollway expansion project and an end to the 300-billion-yen-a-year outlay for that project, beginning in fiscal 2002, which starts April 1. Moreover, he came out in favor of scrapping Housing Loan Corp., Urban Development Corp. and Japan National Oil Corp.
Basically he is moving in the right direction, living up to his repeated vows to attack "sacred cows." With time running out to deliver on his reform promises, he appears to be raising the stakes on the back of his continued high popularity. That is characteristic of his way of doing things. He calls it a "political experiment." The question is whether reform of high-profile public corporations affecting people's lives and economic prospects should be tackled on an "experimental" basis. Experiment, by definition, is often synonymous with failure.
This is not to belittle the courage and determination with which Mr. Koizumi is pushing his reform agenda. The point is that for all his impassioned appeals for reform, some of his plans seem to be hitting the wall. In fact, he has produced very few results since taking office in April. The bold thrust of his reforms and the plain language in which he has explained them have won him record approval ratings. But he still seems to have a long way to go before he can achieve most of his declared goals.