OSAKA -- Members of five groups in the Osaka Prefectural Assembly separately submitted to the speaker of the chamber Thursday drafts of a resolution calling on Gov. "Knock" Yokoyama to clarify his response to sexual harassment allegations.
Assembly groups representing the Liberal Democratic Party, New Komeito and the Japanese Communist Party berated the governor for "confusing prefectural governance and damaging the people's trust," according to their draft resolutions.
The governor recently announced that he would not fight the accusations in court, saying he was "too busy with public affairs."
The move came on the final day of the September assembly session, and the drafts were expected to be voted on later in the day.
Because no single faction has a majority in the chamber, how the final version of the resolution will be worded remains in doubt. Faction leaders held heated debates behind closed doors in urgently called meetings Thursday.
The LDP, the largest group in the assembly with 43 members, submitted a resolution that the governor "regain the public's trust," and refrained from demanding the governor admit responsibility because "the truth of the allegations cannot be confirmed."
In contrast, the 22-member New Komeito group and the 12-member JCP body demanded that Yokoyama admit responsibility, while two small groups affiliated with the Democratic Party of Japan called on him to "show regret" and regain trust.
A statement from New Komeito earlier in the day said it has no intention of withdrawing its demand that the resolution include wording that effectively demands that the governor accept responsibility.