Japan’s Takaichi Active on Social Media even on Holidays

Tokyo, Aug. 18 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has been busy on social media writing about her policies even during the country’s Bon summer holiday period. While working around a host of issues including a territorial dispute with Russia and a major earthquake that struck the southwestern Japan prefecture of Kumamoto in July, the prime minister has made up to seven, often lengthy, posts a day on X. Touching on Japan’s gross domestic product data, Takaichi in one of her posts on Monday said that she will “ensure a transition to a ‘growth oriented economy’ that does not go back to deflation.” In other posts made on the same day, she underscored Japanese roles at U.N. agencies while noting that Hiroshima, a city in western Japan, hosted an international meeting on Antarctica in May. On Thursday, Takaichi had to deal with a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to Etorofu, one of the four disputed islands. Two days later, she attended a memorial ceremony in Tokyo to mark the anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II. On both days, Takaichi made several posts on X. She made posts on X even on Friday and Sunday, when she spent the entire day at the prime minister’s residence. On Friday, she made seven elaborate posts, five of which were on her efforts to cushion the impact of soaring prices. She reiterated her pledge to make Japan “strong and prosperous.” She made two posts on Sunday, touching on economic security and cybersecurity. Takaichi’s active presence on social media was due to “the lack of coverage by the media” on her efforts, several people close to her said. She was touting her policies in an apparent effort to reverse a slide in her public approval ratings. Some have voiced worries about her lack of days off as Takaichi’s mind is seemingly still on work when she is not at work. Monday’s posts were made shortly after she returned from a Tokyo hospital, where she spent about six hours undergoing tests on her hand as she has rheumatoid arthritis. The prime minister has said that she only has up to three hours of sleep at night. Some believe that her health may become a risk for her political standing. A mid-ranking member of Takaichi’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party said she should take a leaf out of the book of her mentor, the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who spent some time recuperating at a holiday home. “Resting is also part of the job,” the LDP member said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]