TOKYO • The outspoken reformer named by Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to lead a massive vaccine roll-out has pledged to work quickly on inoculations as the country moves closer to approving Pfizer's shot for the coronavirus.
Mr Taro Kono yesterday said he will do everything he can to get as many people as possible inoculated when Japan looks to start vaccinations late next month.
Mr Kono is facing a public more sceptical of vaccines than in many other nations and is charged with leading a campaign set to be a defining moment for Mr Suga, whose support has fallen hard due to what many see as mistakes in the government's management of the coronavirus outbreak.
Mr Suga's choice is largely a move to boost his own rapidly sinking support rates, but may also aim to neutralise a strong rival for his job.
With recent polls showing support around 34 per cent compared to 74 per cent after he took office, there are mutterings in political circles about getting rid of Mr Suga, seen as a sharp backroom operator but a poor communicator, unable to effectively marshal citizens to fight the most lethal wave of virus cases in the country.
The job of coordinating between ministries responsible for vaccination is likely to be tricky, but given the high-profile nature of the task and Mr Kono's ambitions, refusing was not possible.
"I think it's a possibility that it's sort of Suga giving a poisoned chalice to Kono because, of course, he's an obvious candidate for succession and Suga is very much aware that there's open discussion about his replacement already," said political science professor Koichi Nakano of Sophia University.
"This is a way Suga can tie Kono's political ambitions with his own... He can ensure that Kono will be working for him for his own political advancement," Professor Nakano said.
When Mr Suga became Prime Minister last September, he named Mr Kono to an administrative reform post in his Cabinet rather than one of the traditional high-profile jobs, initially raising suspicions that he was trying to sideline a potential rival.
Many in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party remain wary of the overseas-educated Mr Kono, 58, and a former foreign and defence minister known for his diplomatic experience - a weakness of Mr Suga's.
Mr Kono told Reuters in an interview last week that the Tokyo Olympics may not go ahead this summer as Mr Suga's government has pledged. "We need to do the best we can to prepare for the Games at this moment, but it could go either way," he said, setting off a fury of damage control.
However, Mr Kono yesterday was warier, saying only that he would do his utmost so that as many citizens as possible could be inoculated as early as possible.
Japan, which has yet to approve any vaccine, aims to start at the end of next month.
Public opinion on Mr Kono's appointment was divided, with some on social media hailing the move, but a majority more cynical. "Suga is simply using Kono to boost his own support," wrote one Twitter user.
Health Minister Norihisa Tamura had said last week that he hoped Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine would be approved in mid-February, making it the first in the country.
As Mr Suga's popularity has slumped, Mr Kono was voted the most suitable person to be the next prime minister in a Mainichi poll last Saturday. Mr Kono has in the past publicly stated his desire for the top job.
BLOOMBERG, REUTERS
