Japan PM To Resign: Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said on Friday that he would not challenge the election of the ruling party leader later this month, amid growing criticism over shortcomings in the management of the coronavirus pandemic. This paved the way for the election of a new leader as prime minister.
Suga told reporters his energies were split between leading Japan’s response to the pandemic and leading the campaign to become leader of the Liberal Democratic Party at some point. He said: “I have decided not to contest the election of the party leader, because I have to focus on preventive measures for the corona virus. ” (Japan PM To Resign)
Suga faces criticism for dealing with the coronavirus and hosting the Olympics despite health concerns amid the pandemic. At the same time, its popularity has declined significantly. He hoped that the organization of the Olympics would deal with his declining popularity, but that too was brushed aside.
Suga said that since taking office last year, he has devoted his energies to all important issues, including tackling the virus. He said: “But it takes a tremendous amount of energy to do the two things together and I decided that I had to choose one of the two.”
The Prime Minister said: “I have repeated many times that as Prime Minister it is my responsibility to protect people’s lives and health and for that I will devote myself to this. The Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partners have a majority in parliament, meaning whoever wins the September 29 elections will become the new prime minister.
The campaign for the party’s election will officially begin from September 17th. Two ministers in the government of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have emerged as potential candidates. Former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida is considered the main candidate for the post of party leader. Apart from that, many current and former ministers have also expressed their desire to run for the post of party leader.
However, Suga’s decision is seen as a political decision so that the party can have a new leader in the general election scheduled for later this year (Japan PM To Resign). The mandate of the lower house ends at the end of October and it is imperative that the elections take place at the end of November. Suga became prime minister in September last year after Abe resigned for health reasons.
