LDP head rules out possibility of forming grand coalition with DPJ+

TOKYO, April 7 Kyodo -
Sadakazu Tanigaki, leader of the largest opposition Liberal Democratic Party, on Thursday ruled out the possibility of forming a grand coalition with the ruling Democratic Party of Japan in the immediate future.
''Discussions of that kind are absolutely impossible as (both parties) haven't even attempted to coordinate policies in advance,'' Tanigaki said of the idea for the LDP to become part of a grand coalition government to help carry out post-quake relief and reconstruction measures.
While shunning for now the idea to join forces with the DPJ, the LDP has promised its full cooperation in swiftly passing the first quake-related extra budget for fiscal 2011.
The idea of a grand coalition was proposed by Prime Minister Naoto Kan to Tanigaki over the phone on March 19. Tanigaki rejected the offer but began reconsidering it at the urging of some party supporters and LDP heavyweights who were open about it.
The LDP chief has since been hearing opinions from LDP heavyweights and its former presidents, including former prime ministers Yasuhiro Nakasone and Junichiro Koizumi, as opposition and ruling camps try to put politics aside and work together to help areas affected by the March 11 devastating earthquake and tsunami, and the ensuing nuclear crisis.
Tanigaki said, ''Almost all those I talked to were cautious about forming a grand coalition without much thought.''
Koizumi has voiced his opposition to a possible grand coalition government with the DPJ, while Nakasone has advised Tanigaki to give consideration to the New Komeito party, the second largest opposition party and LDP's former coalition partner during its rule, in coalition-related talks with Kan.
Tanigaki vowed the LDP will continue cooperating with the government over reconstruction measures but will be critical over points that call for criticism.
''I will not hide that I have doubts about the way (the premier) is exercising his leadership,'' he said, adding that a leader who cannot take responsibility for his actions is ''extremely unfit'' to steer crisis management.
Before the quake, the LDP had been keen on pushing Kan, who was very unpopular and criticized for his lack of leadership, to dissolve the lower house and call for a general election. But in the wake of the disaster the LDP shifted its policy to a more cooperative stance.
But Tanigaki said, ''If we feel that leaving things the way they are now will do no good to the public, toppling the government will be inevitable.''
==Kyodo