Fumio Kishida Promises To Tackle Pandemic Aftermath Better Than His Predecessors
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Roshan Amiri
- . November 1, 2021
- . Update: November 2, 2021 12:40 am
Japan– Japanese PM Fumio Kishida retains his leadership as he sweeps a win for his party, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). He became PM just a month go and his party swept a vote bank of more than 233 lower house seats, just enough for him to govern without the need of the support of a coalition partner.
Mr. Kishida was preceded by Yoshihide Suga whose leadership despite being President of the ruling party did not live more than a year. The decade long leadership control by the ruling party has been criticized at the time of the pandemic.
The resignation came amid plummeting poll ratings for the LDP following an unpopular push to continue with the Tokyo Olympics despite public concern about surging Covid-19 rates. Kishida isn’t new to politics and has served as the foreign minister from 2012 to 2017.
The general elections witness a control of more than 50percent seats of the 465 seats and was a deciding factor for the lower House of Representatives. Japan’s parliament or the National Diet, comprises the lower House of Representatives and an upper House of Councillors.
Initial exit polls were showing that LDP would need the support of coalition partner, Komeito. On his side is the fact that Kishida has a political background due to his family. He has also been the longest serving lawmaker for the ruling party. He is also known to have brokered a visit by US President Barack Obama to the nuclear city of Hiroshima, making history for a US president to ever visit the war site.
Despite having failed the University of Tokyo entrance exam, seen as a huge family embarrassment, he held the desire to hold top leadership in the government and has worked his way up. He had already promised to spend millions in the proper recover of the Covid-19 pandemic; a sour point that has rocked the boat for all previous PMs.
