(News Today) - When Naoto Kan stormed into a meeting of executives from Tokyo Electric Power at 5.30am on Tuesday, he demanded an answer to a question being asked all around the world: "What the hell is going on?"The Japanese prime minister's outburst did not just lay bare the growing tensions between his government and Tepco over the utility's handling of the escalating crisis engulfing its radiation-leaking Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
It also added weight to one of the most worrying aspects of a five-day crisis that could make or break the future of nuclear power in the world's third largest economy: the sense that the prime minister and his hard-pressed administration are not fully in control.
Mr Kan's exasperated questioning suggested a serious failure of co-ordination between officials and Tepco amid public concerns that neither are able to come up with solutions to the dangerous problems the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant has suffered since being hit by an earthquake and tsunami last Friday.
Near the top of the prime minister's list of complaints was Tepco's failure immediately to report an explosion at the plant on Saturday. Officials say Tepco did not tell the government about the first of a series of explosions at the plant until about an hour after it had happened.
Tepco's sluggishness resulted in a loss of face for Mr Kan, particularly since the blast on Saturday occurred just as he was explaining the situation at Fukushima to opposition politicians.
His omission of any mention of the blast in that meeting created an opportunity for his opponents to question his grasp of the situation and his leadership.
"Not a word [about the blast] was said," said Ryoichi Hattori, an opposition politician. "It is questionable to what extent the prime minister and cabinet were aware of the problems related to nuclear power plants."
But some analysts say the fact he was not informed earlier also reflects badly on Mr Kan's own administration.
The failure of his aides in the cabinet's crisis management office to inform him in a timely manner indicates that "there is a communication problem within the cabinet as well", said Takao Toshikawa, a political analyst.
Mr Kan's decision to be so vocal in his annoyance with Tepco may reflect in part the fact that the government is exposed to public criticism over its sometimes uncertain handling of the admittedly difficult task of balancing action to protect the public with the need to prevent panic.
Frustration is also growing in the area around the stricken nuclear plant, where residents have been struggling to decode official announcements about the Fukushima Daiichi's troubles while being subject to frequently revised advice and evacuation orders.
"There is so little information from the government and we are having a very hard time," said Katsunobu Sakurai, mayor of Minamisoma city in Fukushima prefecture. "Residents are really fearful".
But Mr Kan's decision to go critical over the nuclear crisis appears intended to steel the will of Tepco executives so that they will do whatever it takes to safely resolve the crisis.
In comments overheard and reported by a nearby journalist from Japan's Kyodo newswire, the prime minister told them the Tepco bosses that they should not have allowed staff to abandon their posts as the disaster escalated.
''In the event of withdrawal from there, I'm 100 per cent certain that the company will collapse,'' Kyodo quoted Mr Kan as saying. ''I want you all to be determined.''
However they feel about each other, the government and utility must work together to avert disaster at Fukushima Daiichi. The creation on Tuesday of a joint crisis committee of government and Tepco representatives under Mr Kan's leadership could help foster closer co-operation. But it also begs the question as to why such a body did not already exist.
Source : CNN
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