The shutdown of the Hamaoka Nuclear Power Plant puts Ozawa

[mostakimvip04]

On May 9th, when Chubu Electric Power Co. accepted the request of Prime Minister Naoto Kan and announced the shutdown of all reactors at the Hamaoka Nuclear Power Plant, the lights were on in the private office of former Democratic Party leader Ichiro Ozawa in Tokyo's Minato Ward until late into the night. A Democratic Party source said, "It seems that Ozawa and his legal team were holding a meeting in the office until late into the night."

Ozawa was forced to stand trial on charges of violating the remove background image Political Funds Control Law (false statements) in connection with the purchase of land by his political fund management organization, Rikuzankai. It appears that he was attending a trial preparation meeting that day, but the severity of the situation Ozawa finds himself in is highlighted by the fact that he has to devote his time to preparing for his own trial while the public's attention is focused on the reconstruction and recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake and measures to deal with the nuclear accident.

Ozawa first raised the flag of his intention to topple the government just before the holidays. First, his close aide, Deputy Leader Kenji Yamaoka, and others set up a study group under the banner of "bringing down Suga."

Although 100 people were supposed to gather, only 64 actually showed up. Nevertheless, on May 6, Ozawa launched a fierce attack on Kan, saying, "With the current response to the nuclear issue, the whole of Japan will fall into an irreversible situation," in an attempt to accelerate the movement to overthrow the government.