Profile of Yoshihide Suga, Candidate for Prime Minister of Japan Page all

KOMPAS.com – Yoshihide Suga has won the election of the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the ruling party in Japan on Monday (14/9/2020).

With this victory, Suga has a great chance of becoming Prime Minister (PM) Japan, replaces Shinzo Abe who resigned because of health problems.

Suga managed to get 377 votes or about 70 percent of the votes coming from members of parliament and LDP branches in all prefectures in Japan.

He defeated two competitors, namely former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

Later, he will officially become PM of Japan after the Japanese parliament, which is controlled by the LDP, will vote on Wednesday (9/16/2020).

Also read: Winning the Election of Party Leader, Yoshihide Suga Will Become Japanese PM

So who is Yoshihide Suga?

Strawberry farmer boy

Born on December 6, 1948 in Akita Prefecture, Suga is the son of a strawberry farmer. As the oldest son, he often helps his parents in the fields.

However, Suga refused to become a farmer and was determined to travel to Tokyo in search of another job.

Reporting from Kyodo News English, Monday (14/9/2020), he then enrolled in lecture at Hosei University in 1969.

Instead of following a wave of student protests against the Japan-US alliance and the Vietnam War, Suga chose to work to pay for his school fees.

His interest in politics strengthened a few years after graduating and working for an electrical maintenance company.

He later became a member of the Diet (Japanese Parliament) secretary and studied commerce for more than a decade, before finally running for Yokohama City Council in 1987.

In 1996, Suga had the opportunity to enter national politics after replacing a member of the DPR.

Also read: Yoshihide Suga predicted to be Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s replacement

The closeness to Abe

Suga’s political background and journey stands in stark contrast to Abe, who was groomed for office from a young age.

Since Abe came to power, Suga has a close relationship with him. Suga even accepted his first cabinet position as Minister of the Interior during Abe’s first term in power from 2006 to 2007.

He also played a key role in Abe’s return to power in late 2012.

Quoted from CNN, Sunday (9/13/2020), Suga was known as Abe’s right hand man after serving as the Prime Minister’s cabinet secretary.

However, the two have very different styles.

Also read: Japan’s PM Strongest Candidate, Yoshihide Suga, Ready to Continue Abenomics

Workaholic

Suga is also known as a workaholic. He gets up at 5 a.m., spends an hour checking the news, including all major newspapers, takes a 40 minute walk, does 100 sit-ups, has breakfast, and then goes to work to the office. Prime Minister at 09.00 in the morning.

During the day, Suga has held press conferences twice a day as a government spokesman and meetings dozens.

He prefers to eat buckwheat noodles for lunch so he can finish eating in five minutes.

After leaving the prime minister’s office at 6:45 p.m., he met over dinner with other politicians and academics to exchange views on policy.

Suga often holds these two or three meetings every night, taking care not to overeat.

Also read: Shinzo Abe’s close friends are called to participate in the Japanese PM Election Exchange

Heavy duty awaits

A poll by Mainichi, one of Japan’s largest newspapers, prior to Abe’s announcement of resignation found that 58.4 percent of people surveyed were dissatisfied with his handling of the pandemic.

The poll proves the heavy task that has awaited Suga.

Major problems, such as large government debt and a high population of elderly people, deserve attention.

Even though he is seen as a successful spokesperson, not many people know about Suga.

“Nobody really knows who this guy is. He works behind the scenes,” said Japanese politician Brad Glosserman.

“He has a very good story, very independent. The question, however, is to what extent he has a personality that can shine,” he continued.

Meanwhile, a Waseda University political science professor Etsushi Tanifuji said Suga doesn’t have a big vision for Japan and is more of a problem solver.

“Some leaders have ideologies and they act with it as their guiding light. Suga is not such a politician,” he explained.

Also read: Sanctions for DKI Jakarta PSBB Violators Are Effective? This says the epidemiologist

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