The ruling Democratic Party of Japan Thursday rushed a bill through the Lower House Financial Affairs Committee on Thursday to help small and midsize enterprises overcome cash flow problems. The opposition Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito refused to join the vote. Later the Lower House approved the bill in a plenary session.
The vote marked the first time since the DPJ-led administration came into being that the DPJ has railroaded passage of a bill. When it was in the opposition, the DPJ used to criticize the LDP for pushing bills through without due deliberations. Now the DPJ is employing the same tactics.
The bill calls on banks and other lenders to ease the terms of repayments, including repayment periods, if requested by small and midsize firms or by home-loan borrowers. The committee did not begin deliberations on the bill until Wednesday. The DPJ decided to vote on it Thursday. The LDP and Komeito's opposition to hasty passage of the bill stands to reason.