I agree with Paul Gaysford's May 20 letter, "Stupidity of planners and builders." The problems and failures to which he points go far beyond the scope of the letter's title. Gaysford seems to expect better from the country that he and I both call home, and so do I.
At the end of his letter, he asks the very pertinent question: "But who will lead us in such a positive step forward?" I believe that the answer to this question can easily be found in the same day's edition of The Japan Times.
The first clue is the AFP-JIJI article about Fleur Pellerin, France's first South Korean-born minister, who was adopted by a French family while she was an infant.
The second clue emerges from among the list of social problems detailed by Roger Pulvers in his Counterpoint article "Poverty stalks the land — and its long-term victims will be today's young."
The third clue is on the same page as Gaysford's letter. It is a letter by Aniruddha Mallik, titled "Promote respect, not sympathy," lamenting the failure of Japan to adequately recognize the potential of women in business and, by extension, politics.
The answer to Gaysford's question should now be clear: women!
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.