Japan's opposition parties demand extraordinary parliament meeting
(VOVWORLD) - All nine opposition parties in Japan including the Constitutional Democratic Party, the Democratic Party for the People, and the Social Democratic Party on Thursday submitted a request to the House of Councilors calling for an extraordinary session of the Diet to address the current “power vacuum” following Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru’s resignation.
 Japan's Parliament House (Photo: VOV) |
On Tuesday, the opposition parties had submitted a similar request to the House of Representatives. The lawmakers cited Article 53 of Japan’s Constitution as the legal basis for their demand, which stipulates that if 25% of lawmakers request it, an extraordinary Diet session must be convened. The petition has already gathered signatures from nearly 50% of all lawmakers.
Analysts note that, with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) yet to select Ishiba’s successor or reach an agreement with the opposition to ensure the new party leader will be approved by the Diet as the next prime minister, convening an extraordinary session would be highly disadvantageous for the LDP. It could even threaten the party’s position as the ruling party. According to plan, the LDP will elect its new president on October 4.