New Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba “already discordant” and the future of his “short-lived administration” is in sight–

Lies have already caused discord in the new administration.

In fact, Mr. Ishiba also sincerely believed that the House of Representatives should be dissolved at an early date,” he said. His statement that the House of Representatives should not be dissolved when the global situation is still unknowable was intended as a measure for the presidential election.

Nevertheless, his decision to call for a general election on October 27, after having so easily backpedaled on his own theory developed during the election campaign, has left those around him in a quandary. It is no wonder that party members call him a liar. In a sense, his inability to read the atmosphere was one of his strong points, but as soon as he became president, he became an ordinary politician who puts party interests first. If he continues like this from the beginning, I can’t imagine what the future holds for him.

Shigeru Ishiba, 67, was named prime minister at an extraordinary session of the Diet on October 1.

However, his sudden “change of course” and “lies” have already caused some discord in the new administration. Former LDP official and political analyst Atsuo Ito says, “He has been a political analyst since he was a freshman.

He has been complaining about the issue of politics and money since he was a freshman. He has maintained this stance ever since he launched the Utopian Politics Study Group in response to the recruiting scandal in 1988, saying, ‘It is strange that so much money is spent on politics. When it came time to run for the presidency, however, he toned it down, avoiding explicit statements about the disposition of the backstage money lawmakers. Since the public had hoped that Mr. Ishiba would put an end to the issue of politics and money, it is only natural that they were disappointed.

As the LDP president was elected in the first presidential election after the dissolution of the major factions within the LDP, there was a growing desire for bold change. However, there is no sign of such an intention in the appointments.

Although there are no backbenchers in the cabinet, the appointment of Junko Mihara (60) and Manabu Sakai (59), who are close to Vice President Suga Yoshihide (75), shows that the party is looking to see how Mr. Suga will look at them. No private-sector appointments have been made, and the cabinet has not been given its own color. While it is understandable that he would make appointments of Diet members who have supported him, the mere fact that the target of discovery was changed from Taro Aso, 84, of the previous administration to Mr. Kan gives the impression that he is paying attention to his elders,” said Koichi Kakutani, a political journalist.

A ‘Short-Lived Government’ About to Become a Reality

Mr. Ishiba’s political life has been marked by “dishonesty. In 1993, he voted for a no-confidence motion against the Miyazawa administration and left the LDP.’ He joined the Aso administration in 2008-’09 as minister of agriculture and fisheries, but he led the charge to remove Aso from office. These words and actions drew anger, and he was harshly criticized for “shooting bullets from behind,” and was forced to stand as a non-mainstream party. Mr. Ito warned, “This background makes it more difficult to manage the administration.

There is no one in the Diet or bureaucracy who would be willing to take the fall for Prime Minister Ishiba, like former Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Seiji Kihara (54) in the Kishida administration. He has neither a confidant nor a friend, so he cannot consult with anyone. When this happens, the government is likely to become unstable.

Ishiba himself is said to have stated this categorically at a meeting held in August.

He probably never thought he would become prime minister. Whoever becomes the next prime minister, whether it is Shinjiro or Takaichi, he or she will lose the Upper House election next summer and either resign or be removed as president. After that, they will either resign or start removing the president, and it will be a short-lived administration.

The words “short-lived administration,” which the new prime minister himself had uttered as if from someone else’s perspective, are now about to become a reality.

From the October 18-25, 2024 issue of FRIDAY