As Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, Shinzo Abe is known for his bellicose policies and the economic strategy feature of “Abenomics.”
Abe has announced that he will resign for reasons of suitability, but will continue to lead the country until a successor is chosen.
After weeks of speculation, he revealed that he had suffered a relapse of ulcerative colitis, an intestinal disease that led him to resign from his first term as prime minister in 2007.
Its departure leaves a possible void in force within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) at one point for Japan.
Nicknamed “the prince,” Shinzo Abe comes from political royalty as the son of former Foreign Minister Shintaro Abe and grandson of former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi.
Abe, 65, was first elected to parliament in 1993, and in 2005 became a member of the cabinet when then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi appointed him to the senior office of chief cabinet secretary.
It came to an end in 2006, when he became Japan’s youngest postwar prime minister.
But a series of scandals – the loss of government pension records, which affected some 50 million claims – have affected his administration.
A major loss for the LDP continued in the space elections in July 2007, and in September of the same year resigned from ulcerative colitis.
In 2012, Abe returned as prime minister and said he had triumphed over the drug disease.
He was re-elected in 2014 and 2017, which fits Japan’s prime minister with more years of service in the process.
Abe’s popularity has fluctuated, however, he has remained largely undisputed as prime minister because of his influence within the LDP, which has replaced his regulations to allow him to serve a third term as party leader.
Abe is in favor of his bellicose stance in defence and foreign policy and has long sought to replace Japan’s post-war pacifist constitution.
His nationalist prospects have heightened tensions with China and South Korea, especially after its scale in 2013 at Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine, a debatable site related to Japanese militarism before and during World War II.
In 2015, he lobbied for the right to collective self-defense, allowing Japan to mobilize troops to protect itself and its attacked allies.
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Its broader goal of reviewing the charter for officially the Japanese army remains undiluted and remains a division factor in Japan.
He is also known for “Abenomics,” his flagship economic policy on financial easing, fiscal stimulus, and structural reforms.
These measures led to the expansion of his first term, but the next slowdown raised doubts about Abenomics’ effectiveness.
Abe’s popularity has recently been affected by considerations for his management of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The cleanable fabric mask distributed through the government, nicknamed “Abenomask”, has been criticized for being too small and late.
There are also considerations that the “Go to Travel” crusade to encourage national tourism has led to a resurgence of Covid-19.
Attempts to revive the economy also faced challenges, with the knowledge published in May, Japan appears to have entered recession for the first time since 2015.
Rumors of Mr Abe’s physical condition began to spread in early August, after weekly Flash magazine reported that he had vomited blood at his workplace in July.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga denied the report, the hypothesis grew after Abe ran at Tokyo’s Keio University Hospital on August 17.
Government resources warned that it would possibly be “tired” from efforts to combat the pandemic, and Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso said the prime minister had worked 147 consecutive days until June.
Jun Azumi of Japan’s Constitutional Democratic Party, if the prime minister’s aptitude interfered with his duties.
On August 24, the same day as Japan’s most years-long prime minister, Abe returned to Keio University Hospital, ingesting a new hypothesis about his future.
The announcement of his resignation on 28 August ended the rumours. However, this would possibly lead to an internal struggle between the LDP factions, as he has refused to appoint a successor.
Without Abe, it turns out that the LDP lacks an influence that can triumph over the party’s internal divisions.
Japan’s next prime minister will face the double challenge of taking control of the party while helping the country rebuild a pandemic.
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