Japan PM Suga denies reports of dissolving parliament in mid-Sept to hold general election

Putting all speculations to rest, Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Wednesday said that he has no plans to dissolve the country's Parliament amid prevailing COVID situation in order to hold general elections. Suga, who is vying for a second term as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, denied it after news had surfaced this week claiming he intended to dissolve the lower house of the Parliament in mid-September, reported the japan times. Speaking to reporters Suga also said that there are no plans to postpone the  Liberal Democratic Party leadership (LDP) election too which is scheduled to take place on September 19. Earlier a report by the Mainichi newspaper claimed that Suga was looking to push back the LDP leadership election until the country's general elections.

'Suga is vying second term as the PM'

Speaking to reporters, Suga said that he cannot dissolve the Parliament in this grim situation and vowed to deal with the coronavirus pandemic as of now. However, citing government sources, Kyodo News said that the Prime Minister is running out of time to announce a date for the upcoming general elections, as the term of the lower house ends on October 21.  Suga is reportedly looking for the second term as the Prime Minister of the country and these reports surfaced after days of tough negotiations between him and some of the top politicians of the ruling camp, it reported.  Earlier on Tuesday, August 31, some media reports suggested that Suga is also planning to replace the party's general secretary, Toshihiro Nikai, who was instrumental in helping him win the top post to succeed former premier Shinzo Abe last September, reported the japan times.  

PM Suga draws flak over poor COVID measures 

Earlier on Sunday, August 29, Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami in his monthly radio show criticised PM Suga for failing to contain the spread of coronavirus in the country. He accused PM Suga of ignoring the COVID surge and public concerns about the pandemic. Criticising further, he said that it seems the Prime Minister does not listen to others, and perhaps he only has eyes that see well, or he sees only what he wants to see.  It should be noted here that Suga has faced criticism for being overly optimistic about vaccine efficacy and holding the Olympics and Paralympics despite surging health concerns and public interest.

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