With the opposition forces controlling the Upper House, the biggest task facing Prime Minister Naoto Kan in the current extraordinary Diet session is securing the passage of a supplementary budget for fiscal 2010 to bolster the flagging economy.
He must also cope with such issues as the looming indictment of former Democratic Party of Japan Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa over a funds reporting scandal and criticism over the government's handling of the row with China over the recent Senkaku Islands incident.
In plenary sessions held earlier this week, the opposition forces demanded that Mr. Kan exercise leadership to help the Diet summon Mr. Ozawa as a witness. Mr. Kan took a rather aloof attitude, saying that the Diet should make the decision itself. He apparently fears that if he agrees to the summoning he will face antipathy from Mr. Ozawa and his supporters. But if Mr. Kan sticks to his position, the Ozawa issue will continue to plague him in the Diet.