KADOMA, Osaka Pref. -- A liberator of a closed local legislature or a troublemaker? That is the question being asked of Hisayoshi Toda, a newcomer to the Kadoma Municipal Assembly.
Promising to disclose activities of his own as an assembly member and the assembly itself, Toda, 44, was elected last April to a 28-seat assembly with 1,313 votes, the least votes among the 28 members.
Since then, he has been fighting a series of battles with non-Communist members of the assembly. Among many others, a recent controversy concerning Toda is whether to wear a tie in the assembly.