Japan's opposition hounds PM, but faces own woes

By Isabel Reynolds

TOKYO, April 9 (Reuters) - Japan's powerful opposition leader berated Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda on Wednesday for trying to push one-sided government plans through a divided parliament, keeping up a confrontation he hopes will spark an early election.

But the latest squabbling in his own fractious Democratic Party, this time over candidates for deputy governor of the central bank, could throw doubt on Ichiro Ozawa's chances of leading a united opposition to victory.

Hours after the Democrats approved the government's latest nomination for central bank governor, ending weeks of wrangling that had left the post vacant, Ozawa launched a fresh attack.

"In the last election, we opposition parties gained a majority," Ozawa said in a debate with Fukuda punctuated with jeering and laughter by lawmakers.

"In this situation, there is no way we will simply accept every government proposal," he added. "We have our own opinions."

The Democrats and their smaller allies won control of the less powerful upper house of parliament in a poll last July, capitalising on widespread frustration over official bungling of pension records and vowing to address ordinary people's concerns.

The stand-off between the two chambers has paralysed policy-making, further damaging Fukuda's sagging popularity.

"I am suffering so much, people should feel sorry for me," Fukuda remarked during the debate.

Ozawa is pushing for an immediate general election, hoping to wrest the lower house majority from the long-ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its junior partner, the Komeito party.

But his own difficulties were highlighted on Wednesday when three Democrats broke with the party line in the vote on a deputy central bank governor.

Another five were absent or abstained, domestic media said.

Both houses of parliament approved Masaaki Shirakawa for central bank chief, but the upper house vetoed the government's candidate for deputy governor, a former vice finance minister.

Ozawa has said the party will not accept anyone whose appointment could be seen as part of the "amakudari" golden parachute system that has traditionally allowed senior bureaucrats to land lucrative post-retirement positions.

The three rebel Democrats voted with the government in favour of Hiroshi Watanabe as deputy.

Many other lawmakers in the party had shared that view but fell into line after Ozawa refused to budge.

"I think considerable frustration has built up within the party because the views of the majority were eventually turned down," former Democratic Party leader Seiji Maehara told reporters. He said he voted in line with party policy and against his personal beliefs.

The decade-old party is an amalgam of former LDP members, ex-socialists and hawkish younger lawmakers, and has often been criticised for lacking coherent policies.

Ozawa, who suffers from health problems and complained of feeling unwell during his debate with Fukuda, later dismissed questions about party unity.

"Even in your company there are people who disagree with company policy, right?" he told one reporter. "In a democracy it's all right to have all sorts of opinions."

Despite dissatisfaction with Ozawa's top-down style, analysts said there was little chance of the party breaking up.

"If Ozawa's public support rate suddenly sank, there might be moves to try to oust him, but otherwise there is absolutely no advantage to be gained for the party from a split," said Yasunori Sone of Keio University in Tokyo.

Fukuda need not call an election until next year and is thought to want to hold off at least until after the G8 summit, which Japan is set to host in July. (Additional reporting by Teruaki Ueno and Linda Sieg; Editing by Hugh Lawson)