Advertisement
Coronavirus pandemic
AsiaEast Asia

Coronavirus: Japan’s Kishida pushes booster shot campaign as support sags

  • The Japanese PM said he isn’t considering a fresh state of emergency for Tokyo, even as cases jump and the capital’s hospital bed occupancy rate climbs
  • Elsewhere, Ivermectin effective against Omicron, says Japanese company; Australia reported its lowest daily deaths in two weeks on Monday

Reading Time:6 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. A new poll shows voter support for him has slipped for the first time since he took office. Photo: Kyodo News via AP
Agencies
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is pushing to quicken the pace of booster vaccinations, as a poll showed his voter support slipping months ahead of a key upper house election.
Advertisement
Kishida inspected a military-run vaccination centre on Monday, as a survey published by the Nikkei newspaper showed his support had dropped six percentage points to 59 per cent, the first fall since he took office in October. Approval of his response to the coronavirus also fell six percentage points to 55 per cent.

He has said he is not considering declaring a Covid-19 state of emergency in Tokyo right now, even as cases jump and the hospital bed occupancy rate climbs. The capital is currently under a quasi-emergency state that calls on places such as eateries and bars to close early and limit alcohol sales.

Tokyo is currently under a quasi-emergency that calls on eateries and bars to close early and limit alcohol sales. Photo: AP
Tokyo is currently under a quasi-emergency that calls on eateries and bars to close early and limit alcohol sales. Photo: AP
Kishida faces an election in the less powerful upper house in July, which could determine whether he holds on to power or joins his predecessor and a long list of other prime ministers in being dispatched through a “revolving door”. A solid result could mean a clear run of more than two years with no need to go to the polls.

“We will urge local governments to speed the vaccinations up further,” Kishida told reporters at the vaccination centre in Tokyo’s business district of Otemachi, as it reopened to administer third shots. About 97 per cent of districts are on track to provide boosters by the end of February to all those 65 and older who want them, he said.

While almost 80 per cent of the Japanese public has received two doses of a vaccine, only 2.7 per cent of the population has received a third shot, according to the website of the prime minister’s office. That is the lowest among developed nations and far behind the government’s own plan.
Advertisement

But Japan has also weathered the pandemic far better than most developed nations. It has posted the fewest total deaths from the virus of any Group of Seven country at 18,764 people, while the death toll in the US is at about 884,000.

Advertisement