The World : Setback for Takeshita Party

Japan’s governing Liberal Democratic Party, under attack for a stock scandal and a new sales tax, suffered a setback in a special parliamentary election. Socialist Sadao Fuchigami defeated Kei Oma of Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita’s party to gain a seat in Parliament’s upper house, election officials said. In his victory speech, Fuchigami told supporters: “The people’s complaints against the (stock) scandal and consumer tax led to my victory.” Tsuruo Yamaguchi, secretary general of the Japan Socialist Party, said his party will call for the resignation of Takeshita’s Cabinet, dissolution of Parliament’s more powerful lower house and a general election.