Sep 01 (Japan Times) - Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga intends to dissolve the Lower House of parliament in mid-September after a reshuffle of the ruling party executive and his Cabinet next week, the Mainichi newspaper said late Tuesday, citing senior government sources.
Suga will delay the Liberal Democratic Party leadership contest originally slated for Sept. 29 until after the general election, said Mainichi, adding that the premier is considering holding the election on Oct. 17.
The report comes after several days of tense negotiations and sudden twists involving Suga and the most powerful politicians in the ruling camp as the unpopular prime minister maneuvers to stay in the top job.
Earlier on Tuesday, media said Suga planned to replace a long-term party ally who was instrumental in helping him succeed Shinzo Abe last September, Toshihiro Nikai, in the key party post of secretary-general.
Some parliamentarians have voiced their unease with the amount of power wielded by Nikai, 82, who has held the post, with control over campaign funds, since August 2016 — the longest in the party’s history.
Suga’s rival for the party leadership, former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, angered Nikai after he proposed limits on executive posts and promised to promote young and middle-level lawmakers over heavyweights last week.
