Citizens of the city of Akune, Kagoshima Prefecture, have started collecting signatures in an effort to initiate a referendum to recall Mayor Shinichi Takehara, who repeatedly made unilateral decisions on matters that in principal require approval of the assembly. His decisions include those on a budget and the selection of a vice mayor.
The Local Autonomy Law allows a local government head to make decisions on his or her initiative without calling an assembly session if there is not enough time to let the assembly approve a proposal. The Akune mayor is taking advantage of this provision.
Mr. Takehara, a former Akune assembly member, was elected mayor in August 2008. After the election, in his blog, he asked residents to name assembly members they want to remove. The assembly passed a no-confidence motion against him. In February 2009, he dissolved the assembly. The newly elected assembly passed a no-confidence motion again. In a May 2009 election, Mr. Takehara was narrowly re-elected.