Defense official reprimanded over comments on refueling mission

Wednesday 07th October, 02:03 PM JST

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14 Comments

timorborder at 02:12 PM JST - 7th October

Yeah, this was bound to happen. When the LDP was still in power, the assumption was that bureaucrats made policy and the bobble heads (the Minister) would just tag along with suitable sound bites for public consumption.

However, with the new DPJ government, there seem to be a number of ministers who want to try and break the power of the senior bureaucracy with regard to their stranglehold on policy formulation. To put it in another way, it is now open season on loose lips. If senior bureaucrats dare to raise their heads above the parapet, they will get shot.
joetheplumber at 03:22 PM JST - 7th October

Akihisa Nagashima, is correct. Japan should continue its role.
thepro at 04:00 PM JST - 7th October

Akihisa Nagashima, is correct. Japan should continue its role.

Why?
DailyBread at 05:53 PM JST - 7th October

defense secretary

Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa must be missing the morning meetings and his defense secretary has to second guess the situation .....
bdaniel08 at 06:19 PM JST - 7th October

Correct or not correct, thats not the question : he (Nagashima) is only a bureaucrat and one of his job is to shup up !
Kankuokyaku at 06:51 PM JST - 7th October

Not sure that Parliamentary Vice Minister of Defense should be considered a bureaucrat as Nagashima is a DPJ diet member appointed to his position by the current government. This looks more like a case of DPJ having a difficult time controlling the message out of their party.
Sarge at 08:08 PM JST - 7th October

Reprimanded for saying what's right.
bdaniel08 at 10:16 PM JST - 7th October

Or reprimanded for saying whats wasnt right.
bdaniel08 at 10:20 PM JST - 7th October

I mean for saying whats is not right.
BuddhismTech at 10:48 PM JST - 7th October

Internet has already changed the world forever. Military is no longer needed to assure human securities in various regions and territories. Only the humankind's greatest concern is about the profiteers, financial networks, underground bankers, and investors who are tightly intertwined with military products and conflicts.
kp123 at 02:48 AM JST - 8th October

As the old Japanese proverb says, "Deru Kui Wa Utareru". ... a protruding nail gets hammered or words to that effect.
BuddhismTech at 04:08 AM JST - 8th October

In this century, the global truth tellers are now more valuable than the global military advisors, who are suspected for aiding the individual elites to achieve their financial and political goals, rather than doing what are best for their tax-paying societies.

Sometime Japan should say "No" instead of saying "Yes" all the time.

Hirofumi Hirano was doing very right to reprimand Nagashima. That would save a lot of money which was supposed to go to the civilian projects more useful to Japan.

Anyone, who is too involved in a real war (excluding a computer game which can't actually kill a human), needs to receive a therapy. This is a very serious matter.
DailyBread at 05:41 AM JST - 8th October

Not sure that Parliamentary Vice Minister of Defense should be considered a bureaucrat as Nagashima is a DPJ diet member appointed to his position by the current government. This looks more like a case of DPJ having a difficult time controlling the message out of their party.

I think you have just employed a new position in Government "Vice Minister of Defense"

Maybe it was the Vice MOD's defense secretary to the Diet's appointed secretary by cabinet to the Minister of defense's secretary who mumbled a jumbo and got hammered in the prime minister’s office
Kankuokyaku at 07:12 AM JST - 8th October

For anyone with questions regarding the 4 elected ministers appointed to oversee MOD, google "Japan MOD" and your confusion should be cleared up on the front page of MOD's website.