5 lawmakers of Japan's DJP resign over pension scandal

Five lawmakers of Japan's largest opposition party offered their resignations as parliament panel chairmen Thursday over pension scandal, putting pressure on cabinet ministers and ruling coalition lawmakers who have been similarly negligent.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) announced later in the day that 33 of its lawmakers failed to pay pension premiums in the past. They are 17 House of Representatives members and 16 House of Councillors members.

The DPJ moves are also expected to have an impact on the House of Councillors' deliberations on a government-sponsored package of pension reform bills that started Wednesday after it cleared the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

According to Kyodo News, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi so far has no plan to go public with a similar list of Liberal Democratic Party members who have failed to make pension payments -- as was done Wednesday by its coalition partner New Komeito party -- or to sack any of the ministers.

New Komeito party leader Takenori Kanzaki said Wednesday he as well as Secretary General Tetsuzo Fuyushiba, policy chief Kazuo Kitagawa and 10 other party lawmakers did not pay mandatory national pension dues in the past.

The five DPJ lawmakers include Giichi Tsunoda, chairman of the upper house Committee on Fundamental National Policies, and HajimeIshii, chairman of the lower house Committee on Audit and Oversight of Administration.

The other two are Financial Affairs Committee Chairman Sadao Hirano, Cabinet Committee Chairman Susumu Yanase and Mitsuru Sakurai, chairman of the Special Committee on Financial Issues and Revitalization of the Economy, both of the upper house.

In their news conference, the four upper house members apologized and said they have failed to pay premiums for periods ranging from three years and seven months to seven years and 10 months.

The growing pension scandal involving Cabinet members and lawmakers from both ruling and opposition camps led to the resignations of Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda and DPJ leader Naoto Kan last Friday and Monday, respectively.

Fukuda failed to pay for a total of 37 months in the 1990s while Kan failed for 10 months in 1996, when he was health and welfare minister.

Six other members of Koizumi's Cabinet, including pension reform architects Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki and FinancialServices Minister Heizo Takenaka, have also admitted to non paymentin the past but have stayed at their posts.

Source: Xinhua