There are various kinds of retirement, but perhaps those who step down in a most manly style are sumo wrestlers. Some of the most admirable rikishi bow out even when a tournament is only halfway done. The announcement of retirement carries a lot of weight, not only in the world of competitive sports, but for anyone with heavy responsibility. It must be embarrassing for people in important posts to retract one.
What about Haruki Madarame, chairman of the Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan, who is wavering on his announced retirement? He previously mentioned his intention to retire at the end of March on the grounds that he had “reached his mental limits.” But he later withdrew the comment, saying: “I impulsively spoke my true intention, but other members asked me to stay. Since the appointment (of a person to the post of NSC chairman) requires Diet consent ...”
Initially, a new nuclear regulatory agency was supposed to be set up on April 1 to replace the NSC. However, with the Diet yet to start deliberations on legislation for the establishment of the new agency, the timetable for organizational change remains undecided. Though Madarame was aware of this, he expressed his intention to resign. He must have been really exhausted.
Madarame was one of the “main players” in the prime minister’s office after the Great East Japan Earthquake. He firmly told Prime Minister Naoto Kan that hydrogen explosions would never occur at Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. He was wrong.
The prime minister harshly criticized him, saying, “Isn’t there anyone else I can turn to for advice?” It must have been hard on Madarame.
With the commission soon to be abolished, the chairman expressed his intention to step down in advance. Still, last week, the commission approved the government’s evaluations of the Oi nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture to prepare for its restart. The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, which carried out the evaluations, is also set to be abolished. In short, the out-of-date organizations that built up the safety myth of nuclear power plants are turning the wheels to restart them.
With the shutdown of Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s last running nuclear reactor on March 26, Japan now has only one reactor in operation--in Hokkaido. Is Japan going to suspend operations of all its nuclear reactors or restart them? We now stand at a crossroads that will affect our future. I hope that we can achieve the important milestone of having no running nuclear reactors. While concerned officials will retire, the future of children continues.
--The Asahi Shimbun, March 27
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