In his trademark blue jumpsuit, the bleary-eyed Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano became the government¡¯s face of the Fukushima nuclear crisis as he faced the press every few hours. Five years later, he has stern words for Japan¡¯s atomic watchdog, the plant¡¯s operator and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe¡¯s nuclear restart policy.
Edano, secretary-general of the now-opposition Democratic Party of Japan, refutes claims by the current administration that the Nuclear Regulation Authority is imposing the world¡¯s most stringent safety standards in the earthquake-prone nation.
¡°The government¡¯s explanation is mistaken,¡± the 51-year-old said in an interview last week at his Tokyo office. ¡°The regulations have not won international recognition as the world¡¯s toughest.¡±
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