Kishida’s Cabinet approval rating plummets to 35 percent
Kanako Mita and Sawako Utsumi
Modern Tokyo Times
The approval ratings of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s administration continue to plummet. In the latest survey by Kyodo News, the new low says that only 35 percent approve of Kishida’s Cabinet.
The approval rate was 54.1 percent in August before declining to 40.2 percent in September – according to surveys done by Kyodo News. This isn’t surprising concerning the Moonies (Unification Church) scandal, the State Funeral of Shinzo Abe, coronavirus deaths reaching 45,000 (below 18,000 before Kishida took office), price hikes connected to sanctions on the Russian Federation, declining Yen to Dollar rate, endless monthly trade deficits, the slow response in helping people and other ills.
Kishida seems to enjoy meeting international dignitaries. Hence, the State Funeral was more about Kishida’s ego and squandering the taxes of hard-working people. He fully understood that the State Funeral was unpopular – especially given the connection of Abe’s grandfather and father with the Moonies.
The increasing price of foodstuffs and energy is also another negative for Kishida. Thus, Kishida’s aloofness to bread and butter issues and his vagueness of “New Capitalism” rankles many.
Lee Jay Walker says, “The “do nothing approach” of Kishida concerning the Yen to Dollar rate – and the coronavirus crisis (outside of relying on foreign vaccines) – is hitting home. Indeed, Kishida’s “New Capitalism” is equally a sham. It merely concerns rich people (with assets and high wages) to invest more wisely and fails to address the effects of decades of stagnant wages. Therefore, for the working poor, lower middle-class, temporary workers, workers in the gig economy, and others – it is a gimmick.”
Reuters reports, “Inflation-adjusted real wages, a key gauge of consumers’ purchasing power, fell 1.8% from a year earlier, extending a decline to post the biggest year-on-year drop in nearly two years.”
The above figure is probably slightly higher now. Yet instead of Kishida responding to bread and butter issues – he focuses on international conventions, wasting money on the State Funeral, and seeking to double military spending despite the enormous ratio of debt that Japan holds.
It feels that the Kishida administration is petering out before it began. However, given the dominance of the ruling party – then not so unusual. Therefore, Kishida will continue to enjoy meeting international dignitaries while doing little at home.
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