Seeking to solidify the base of his ruling coalition, Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi on Wednesday officially proposed to New Komeito leader Takenori Kanzaki that the No. 2 opposition party join the alliance.
"We'd like to establish a solid and stable government with New Komeito's participation in the Cabinet," Yoshiro Mori, secretary general of Obuchi's Liberal Democratic Party, quoted the prime minister as saying.
But the road toward a tieup among the LDP, the Liberal Party and New Komeito will not be without bumps.