Japan's govt under pressure as daily infections cross 10,000

Japan reported more than 10,000 Covid-19 cases in a single day for the first time yesterday, alarming experts who warned that the government seemed to have run out of ideas on how to stem the spread of infections.

The surge in cases will most likely pile the pressure on Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, whose support is plummeting at the worst possible time, before an election that is due by Oct 21.

Yesterday's tally of 10,699 new infections surpassed the day-old record of 9,576 cases by 11.7 per cent.

Mr Suga, addressing reporters in a doorstop interview, acknowledged the presence of "various opinions" but did not offer any new ideas beyond repeating reminders to avoid non-essential outings.

Nor did he admit to any reduced impact of a state of emergency, after government medical adviser Shigeru Omi had earlier in the day cited a confluence of factors for the surging numbers, including an astonishing lack of crisis, fatigue over emergency curbs, the summer holidays, the more contagious Delta variant and the Olympic Games.

The Games have been seen as being accorded "special treatment" while other domestic events and milestone ceremonies have been scrapped. One school of thought is that the holding of the Games has inadvertently blunted the sense of crisis.

Mr Suga stood his ground yesterday, resisting calls to suspend the Olympics by saying that the Games should not be made a scapegoat for the ongoing surge. He noted that the event is taking place in a "bubble", with visitors subject to a strict testing regimen.

This comes after the dismissal by Games organisers earlier yesterday that the Olympics had any correlation with the current spike. Testing at airport immigration as well as in the Olympic Village in Tokyo has picked up 193 cases since July 1.

Still, amid the surge in cases, the government will most likely announce a state of emergency today in the prefectures of Chiba, Kanagawa, Saitama and Osaka, to begin next Monday and run till Aug 31.

Concurrently, an ongoing state of emergency in Tokyo and Okinawa that was set to lapse on Aug 22 will be extended till Aug 31, public broadcaster NHK said.

Lighter "quasi-emergency" measures will be imposed in Hokkaido, Ishikawa, Kyoto, Hyogo and Fukuoka prefectures, also from next Monday to Aug 31.

Most of the new cases, however, are centred in the four Greater Tokyo prefectures of Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa and Saitama, which host a majority of Games events. The four prefectures collectively accounted for 6,469 cases - or 60.5 per cent of the total - yesterday.

Dr Norio Ohmagari of the Disease Control and Prevention Centre warned that the current explosive growth in cases in Tokyo is unprecedented.

Even worst-case forecasts by computer modelling earlier this month showed Tokyo would exceed 3,000 cases only early next month. But the 3,865 cases yesterday marked the second straight day Tokyo has surpassed 3,000 infections.

Kyoto University public health expert, Professor Hiroshi Nishiura, a former government adviser who is now one of the most vocal advocates for the halting of the Games, said an increase at current rates will lead to more than 10,000 cases a day in Tokyo alone by next month.

Key government policies to curb infections include the imposition of a curfew of 8pm for dine-in services and an all-day ban on alcohol sales in emergency areas.

Yet, Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told a regular press conference yesterday that "several thousand" businesses in Tokyo are ignoring these guidelines, citing a government survey.

Breaking the rules means a fine of up to 300,000 yen (S$3,700), but this is seen as a slap on the wrist.

Mr Kato noted that the most common reasons cited for flouting the measures are the slow disbursement of government support and massive customer demand.

Dr Takaji Wakita, director-general of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, said: "The administration has failed to convince people of the urgency or convey that general medical services are on the brink."