Tokyo: Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has said that he will not present his candidacy as leader of the ruling party in re-election to be held this month. This indicates that he may resign as the Japanese PM by the end of September. Suga was appointed as prime minister after the resignation of Shinzo Abe exactly a year earlier. Yoshihide Suga’s expression of his desire not to become party leader comes amid declining approval ratings.
Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s approval rating has fallen to a record low. According to a recent poll by Nikkei, the approval rating of the Suga cabinet is the lowest at 34 percent.
According to public sector broadcaster NHK, Suga told executives of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on Friday that he would not present his candidacy to lead the party, for which elections are due on September 29. This means that Japan will get a new leader, who will be elected as the head of the LDP. Due to the party getting a majority in the parliament, its leader will be elected the leader of Japan.
Suga will focus on dealing with Corona
Suga is being criticized in the country for not taking swift action to deal with Corona and holding the Olympics despite public health concerns. A state of emergency is currently in force in Japan. More than 15 lakh people have been infected with the coronavirus in the country and the pace of vaccination is also very slow. Organizing the Olympic Games in the midst of deteriorating conditions from Corona was quite unpopular among the people.
According to an AFP report, the general secretary of Suga’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) said, “During the executive meeting today, Suga has said that he wants to focus efforts on measures to deal with Corona and that he will be working for the party this month.” Will not participate in the elections for the leadership.’ He said, ‘I am shocked by this decision. He did a good job, but he has made his decision.
Suga comes from a family of strawberry farmers
Coming from a family of strawberry farmers, 72-year-old Suga was first elected to Yokohama City Council in 1987. After this, in 1996, he was elected as an MP for the first time. In 2005, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi appointed him as Senior Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications. The following year, Koizumi’s successor, Shinzo Abe, was promoted to minister with three cabinet positions.
The ruling LDP will hold elections on September 29 to choose its president. The winner of the leadership election is widely expected to be the PM of Japan, as the LDP has a parliamentary majority.
