/ world today news/ The drop in the rating below 30 percent is a serious signal of people’s dissatisfaction with the leader.
Japan’s leading news agency Kyodo Tsushin reported that public support for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s office had fallen to a new low of 28.3 percent, according to the latest survey. However, more than 60 percent of respondents are not satisfied with the promised tax cuts recently announced as part of the economic stimulus package. It was also reported that today the number of those who disapprove of the work of the current government has reached a record 56.7 percent.
For the first time since 2009, the rating of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party fell below 30 percent. Then the decline in popularity of the Liberal Democrats led to their failure in the general parliamentary election, which allowed the opposition Democratic Party to take power in the country.
Although the opposition is now much weaker and fragmented, a worrying symptom was the failure of the LDP in the last parliamentary election, when the ruling party’s candidate was defeated by an independent candidate supported by the opposition. According to Japanese media reports, Kishida linked the LDP’s successful by-elections to plans to dissolve the lower house of parliament and achieve confirmation of popular support for his party and the prime minister himself.
At the same time, until recently, he hoped not only to remain in power in the country, but also to be re-elected next September as the chairman of the ruling party, and therefore the prime minister of Japan.
It was to this end that Kishida made another change in the composition of the government, introducing five female ministers in the hope of increasing his popularity among the female half of Japanese society. However, this maneuver did not lead to a result – the support rating, which jumped slightly, then fell again.
In a recent policy speech to parliament, Kishida assured lawmakers that his cabinet would focus on economic activities. He even excitedly, but somehow nervously proclaimed from the parliamentary rostrum: “Economy! Economy! Economy!” And promised the people a temporary relief from the tax burden.
The prime minister ordered parties in the ruling coalition to consider a new 17 trillion yen ($113 billion) spending package aimed at providing tax breaks to help households suffering from rising prices of daily goods and inflation that has far outstripped growth. of income.
But Japanese observers say the announced tax cuts are being met with mixed feelings in the country, as they come after the Kishida administration previously announced several years of tax hikes to fund a plan to double annual defense spending. Japan. Kazuo Mitsuno, a professor of economics at Hosei University, said that Kishida “has proposed different strategies, but it is not clear how they are connected, and so we cannot see the general goal that he is pursuing.”
Kishida’s broadcast promises did not have the expected effect. It found that 62.5 percent of respondents said they did not support a key feature of the Kishida package: a one-time tax cut of 40,000 yen ($268) per person. The package also includes payments of ¥70,000 for low-income households exempt from paying income taxes and housing taxes.
Of those dissatisfied with the stimulus measures, 40.4 percent said they would rather prepare for upcoming tax increases because of the country’s growing military power.
But Kishida is frantically looking for a way out. For political survival, he will clearly have to encroach even on the almost sacred cow plans for the remilitarization of Japan. The fact is that due to the continued decline of the Japanese yen against the dollar, Tokyo’s planned purchases of expensive American weapons will cost the country’s budget, and therefore the taxpayers, significantly larger sums.
Although Kishida has declared the military building of the Japanese state a priority, it appears that he will have to moderate his appetites and somewhat slow down the implementation of plans to restore Japan as a “great military power”.
As reported by Reuters, citing sources in the Japanese government and the military-industrial complex, Kishida’s cabinet “is forced to reduce purchases of defense equipment, the sharp increase of which was planned as part of the five-year defense build-up plan adopted in December 2022 and the new version of the national security strategy, simply because of the weakening of the yen.”
Kishida cannot help but realize that the decline in his support among voters is largely influenced by his militaristic plans, which are causing discontent among the people. According to Japanese analysts “in the current political climate, it is easier for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to cut purchases than to agree to an even bigger increase in spending”.
Retired Naval Self-Defense Force Admiral Yoji Koda believes Kishida’s decision on whether or not to increase the (military) budget will depend on his ratings. At the same time, by dodging the issue, the government could draw criticism from Japanese companies, which will bear the brunt of cuts in purchases to retain the ability to buy Tomahawk cruise missiles and F-35 jets.
But back to the problem of Kishida’s political survival. In our opinion, today his plans to be re-elected as the chairman of the LDP and continue to lead the government for a few more years seem illusory. He has already become a “lame duck” and therefore can only count on the party to allow him to remain in the prime minister’s chair until re-election in September.
But that’s not guaranteed either. Because his high-ranking party members, and even in front of the whole country in the parliament, unprecedentedly spoke out about the fact that the current leader “not up to the task”.
None of the current prime ministers has faced such a front. Hiroshige Shoko, secretary general of the LDP faction in the House of Councilors, told a parliamentary session that Kishida “he has not shown himself to be a leader.” And this, according to the Japanese media, “has given a little more confidence that his government has finally reached a critical juncture”.
However, Kishida continues to act cheerful and tries to make a good bet in a bad game. Sticking to his script, he told a news conference after his cabinet approved a new economic “stimulus” package:I will do what I think needs to be done to strengthen the economy, to strengthen defense capabilities, to strengthen support for raising and raising children and promoting energy policy’.
Kishida’s commitment to his stated goals has led some Japanese political experts to believe that he has not yet given up hope of dissolving the lower house in the not-too-distant future. “Kishida will try to boost his cabinet’s approval rating by proposing a new economic package and will likely continue to try to find the best time to dissolve the lower house.” said political commentator Tetsuo Suzuki.
Japanese analysts admit that Kishida will do anything to retain the top position, similar to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was in power for more than seven years until 2020. However, the current prime minister clearly lacks Abe’s political charisma, which allowed him to retain its leadership in the country for a record long time.
According to the concepts and norms adopted in Japan, the drop in the prime minister’s rating below 30 percent is a serious signal that the majority of people no longer want to see a politician at the head of the country. Incidentally, this is exactly what happened to Kishida’s predecessor, former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, whose approval rating also fell below 30 percent. This forced Suga to announce his resignation.
So, I think it would not be a mistake to assume that the political elite of the Land of the Rising Sun are already looking for a politician from the ranks of the LDP to replace the rapidly losing popularity of Kishida…
Translation: ES
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