Yoshihide Suga: “I was at my limit”: The depths of his resignation and dangerous signs for the LDP

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced his decision not to run for the presidency at an extraordinary meeting of the LDP board of directors on March 3. The Kan administration, which was inaugurated on September 16, 2008, will close its doors after only one year.

Until a new president is chosen, the cabinet will “concentrate on the new corona.

The day before the election, Prime Minister Kan visited the party headquarters just after 4:00 p.m. and had a meeting with Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general. At that time, he announced that he would not run for the presidency.

This meeting was leaked to the media as a “runoff announcement”.

Nikai pointed out that Kan’s influence would be weakened in the next lower house election, and Kan finally accepted his resignation. A senior LDP official said.

A senior LDP official said, “In the predictions for the general election, it was said around this spring that the LDP would win around 30 seats even if it lost. Later, after the new corona expanded and the fifth wave began, the projected loss range expanded to 50 to 70 seats. The approval rating for the Cabinet has been dropping rapidly, and there is no reason for it to stop dropping. In the summer, Kan’s physiognomy changed. He became more and more tired. I was at my wits’ end.

“Turn it down. I don’t want to leave.

Kan’s extreme fatigue was also evident in his blunder at the memorial services for the A-bombed cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. With the election of the prime minister imminent, those around him urged him to appear on TV and make other media appearances, but…

“But he refused. I don’t want to appear.”

His mental and physical condition was obvious to everyone.

The members of Nikai’s faction scrambled on the night of the 2nd. Volunteers who had expressed their disapproval of Prime Minister Kan rushed around to various quarters, some seeking to put up their own candidate for the presidential election, others asking for more Kishida votes, and so on.

The candidates for the presidency…

Fumio Kishida, who has announced his candidacy for the presidency, said, “I was surprised.

“I’m surprised. I would like to express my respect for his hard work over the past year. Prime Minister Kan’s decision not to run must be taken seriously as a politician’s decision.

Meanwhile, Shigeru Ishiba, who is expected to be a strong candidate, said

“In politics, unexpected things can happen. There is nothing I can say right now.

I can’t say anything at the moment.

Taro Kono was quick to respond to the news of Kan’s resignation. He announced his intention to run for office. However, there are many within the party who say , “No, not Kono.

What was the Kan administration all about?

Amidst a huge surge in public opinion and voices within the party saying, “Kan can’t fight the election,” Kan decided to step down.

Although Kan avoided restrictions on his personal rights as much as possible in his response to the new corona outbreak and made efforts to import the vaccine as soon as possible, he failed to win the public’s trust, not so much because of his inadequate response, but rather because of his weakness in communicating to the public.

The sudden turn of events, with Kan’s decision not to run for prime minister and his resignation, caught Nagata-cho off-guard. Now, the air is extremely uncomfortable, with an aftertaste of silence and the clamor of voiceless voices.

Kan, who has been continuously criticized by the public, has decided to leave. However, the people’s anxiety and distress caused by the new corona will continue. The election of the prime minister is just an event within the LDP.

“It is dangerous to get distracted by the commotion and feel as if something has been solved. It is dangerous to get distracted by the uproar and feel as if something has been resolved, because nothing has been resolved, nor has any progress been made.

We must carefully assess where the future of politics in this country is headed.