The Governor of Tokyo, Yuriko Koike. (Image via Wikipedia)

Koike takes tougher steps than Abe to control COVID-19

Alfonsus Adi Putra
Politics & Economic
News Flash Japan
Apr 14, 2020
1632
The Governor of Tokyo, Yuriko Koike, once again urged the Tokyo residents and businesses to stay put at home and shut down for now amid the explosive surge of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. The 67-year-old politician went on to battle the COVID-19 with her no-nonsense approach.

Per Monday, Japan has recorded 7,411 cases with Tokyo as its hot spots. More than 2,000 cases were recorded in Tokyo, a sharp increase from late March.

Koike once more proved that she had taken a stricter and firmer response toward COVID-19 than the Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe. Some Tokyo residents support her and are amazed that she got guts to tell Abe that he is wrong.

Previously on Tuesday, a state of emergency was announced on six prefectures, including Tokyo. With the state of emergency, these 7 prefectural governors are given the authority to urge people and businesses to stay put and close for a while. However, there is no fine or any penalties for disobedience to the state of emergency.

Even more, Koike’s stern approach also affects other ruling governors in other prefectures to call on businesses to close, although the central Japanese government told them to wait.

The incident where the governors resist the national government’s order is rare, showing the incompetence of the national government currently.

According to a poll released by the Sankei newspaper and Fuji News Network on Monday, about 64% of the Japanese residents disapproved of Abe’s approach toward COVID-19, up by 25.1 points from the late March poll.

Abe is also struggling to balance the number of cases and the Japanese economy. He urged the businesses to allow teleworking, aiming to reduce 80% of person-to-person contact.

The government is afraid to push for broader business closure in fear of the damage inflicted on the economy at the brink of recession even before the pandemic. Should they be closed, these businesses have called for direct compensation for the revenue of the closure, a hefty cost that the government is wary of shouldering.

Once a former TV announcer with her expertise in communication skills, Koike warned that Tokyo could face “Western-style lockdown” and called for an early state of emergency.

She was the first female Defense Minister and the first woman to run for the leader position of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Despite the current repercussion, Abe and Koike share the same political view to reforming Japan’s Post-War Constitution. Koike also echoed Abe’s reluctance to postpone the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan.

However, Koike went out from the LDP in 2016 to be elected as the Tokyo Governor. A year later, she formed a party to topple LDP.

Source: https://bit.ly/3a7dKkC

Politics , Regulation , Lockdown , Medical , Health , Pandemic , Coronavirus , COVID-19 , Asia , Japan , Tokyo , Yuriko-Koike , Shinzo-Abe