Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Tsutomu Sato has approved the retention of Mr. Yoshifumi Nishikawa as president of Japan Post Holding Co. And now, with Prime Minister Taro Aso's endorsement of Mr. Sato's decision, the political turmoil over whether Mr. Nishikawa should remain in his position has ostensibly ended. But Japan Post will not easily gain people's trust.
In January, Mr. Kunio Hatoyama, Mr. Sato's predecessor, had expressed opposition to Japan Post's decision to sell 70 Kampo no Yado inns and nine housing facilities to a subsidiary of leasing company Orix Corp. for a mere ¥10.9 billion — less than 5 percent of the original investment. Mr. Hatoyama criticized the decision as a "done deal," since Orix chairman Yoshihiko Miyauchi had been involved in designing the privatization of postal services. Although the decision was eventually dropped, Mr. Hatoyama pressed for the ouster of Mr. Nishikawa. Mr. Hatoyama then resigned June 12.
After Mr. Nishikawa told Mr. Sato that he and four other Japan Post executives would take pay cuts, Mr. Sato approved keeping him on. Mr. Nishikawa also accepted Mr. Sato's demand that he dismiss four executives he had recruited from Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. where he had served as president. He later submitted to Mr. Sato an operations improvement plan that included setting up a panel to advise Japan Post on corporate governance and rules for real estate property sales.