Former Prime Minister Morihiro Hosokawa, who has been the glue linking the intraparty groups within the Democratic Party of Japan, announced April 30 that he will resign as a Diet member.
In a move that surprised virtually the entire Diet, he told a news conference that he wants to quit because his duty in realizing an expanded DPJ is completed.
It is the first resignation by a former prime minister who apparently has no compelling reason to step down. Hosokawa, aged 60, was almost certain to be re-elected to the Diet for years to come.