APSN | Poll: Most Japanese distrust government on nuke crisis

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Poll: Most Japanese distrust government on nuke crisis

Associated Press - May 30, 2011

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Tokyo – A new poll showed Monday that more than 80 percent of Japanese voters do not trust government information about the country's nuclear crisis.

The poll conducted by Fuji Television Network also found that nearly 85 percent of respondents said the utility that operates the stricken Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant is dealing with the crisis poorly.

An earthquake and tsunami on March 11 damaged crucial cooling systems at the plant, causing the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl. The twin disasters also left more than 24,000 people dead or missing in northeastern Japan.

Eighty-one percent of respondents to the survey said they did not trust government information about the crisis, Fuji TV said. Seventy-eight percent said Prime Minister Naoto Kan lacked leadership in handling the disasters.

Kan is facing calls for his resignation even within his own ruling party. Opposition parties are expected to submit a no-confidence motion against him as early as Thursday.

Kan is likely to survive the motion because his Democratic Party of Japan controls the powerful lower house of parliament. However, some ruling party lawmakers may support the motion to pressure Kan to quit, local media say.

The national poll of eligible voters was conducted by telephone on May 28-29 and had 1,000 responses. No margin of error was given, but a poll of that size would normally have a margin of error of about 4 percentage points.