TOKYO, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike on Wednesday said her new party will not toe the line of conventional politics and will operate beyond traditional constraints while aiming to "reset" Japan.
Ahead of a general election to be held next month, Koike, along with 14 lawmakers who have joined her new "Kibo no To" (Party of Hope), told a press conference Wednesday that her "tolerant, reform-minded conservative party will field as many candidates as possible nationwide in the House of Representatives election," expected to take place on Oct. 22.
On the occasion of the party's founding, Koike stated that amid a sense of crisis the nation needs to be "reset" in the best interests of security and economics.
"I am starting this party of hope today along with my friends who share this sense of crisis: that if we don't reset Japan now, we may not be able to fully protect our international competitiveness and national security," said Koike.
Goshi Hosono, who left the Democratic Party last month to form the new party with Koike, said that the new party's policies will be based on open-mindedness and realistic foreign policies.
"The party will develop a realistic foreign policy within the country's pacifist principles, work for a society that empowers all regardless of gender or age, and promote the wise spending of tax revenues," Hosono said.
He added that the party was focused on seizing power from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition and ultimately forming a new government.
Abe announced earlier this week that he intends to dissolve the lower house of parliament on Thursday and call a snap election.
The move has sparked criticism from the opposition camp who have taken aim at Abe planning not to give a policy speech at the outset of Thursday's parliamentary session, or answer questions pertaining to scandals that have plagued the LDP bloc.
Opposition party seniors, including Koike, have questioned the rationale and logic behind Abe's calling of a snap election and lambasted the move as being a means to extend his grip on power while dodging having to answer accusations of cronyism that have been leveled at him.
Koike on Wednesday also said that in the current political climate, concerning regional geopolitics, now was not the time to for there to be a political vacuum.
Opposition parties including the main Democratic Party and the minor Liberal Party, led by political heavyweight Ichiro Ozawa, held talks recently on possible ways of collaborating to mount a serious challenge to Abe and his ruling LDP.
Seiji Meahara, leader of the Democratic Party, is reportedly leaning toward coordinating with Koike's new party and possibly merging with the Liberal Party, sources close to the matter said Wednesday.
Despite skepticism expressed by some quarters about Koike's ability to simultaneously carry out her responsibilities as governor of the capital as well as lead the new party, Koike restated her intention to stay on as Tokyo Governor on Wednesday.
