Okinawa Gov Takeshi Onaga, who fiercely confronted the central government over the relocation of a U. S. base within the island prefecture, died Wednesday, the prefectural government said. Okinawa Prefecture, led by the 67-year-old Onaga, has been confronting the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe over the transfer
Okinawa Gov Takeshi Onaga, who fiercely confronted the central government over the relocation of a U. S. base within the island prefecture, died Wednesday, the prefectural government said.
Okinawa Prefecture, led by the 67-year-old Onaga, has been confronting the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe over the transfer of U. S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma from densely populated Ginowan to the coastal area of Henoko in Nago.
Opponents of the base transfer may struggle to find a strong candidate for the upcoming gubernatorial election originally scheduled in November but now expected in September. The Okinawa assembly is controlled by members against the relocation plan, but they were expecting Onaga to run.
One assembly member who supported Onaga said, “We’re shocked. We don’t know what to do.”
A source close to Abe said, “It would be a very tough battle as we’ll be facing strong emotional opposition from prefectural residents who don’t want to waste Mr Onaga’s efforts.”
Late last month, Onaga, who was recuperating after undergoing pancreatic cancer surgery, asked local officials to start procedures to retract his predecessor’s approval of landfill work for the base relocation in his latest attempt to block the construction work.
