Can-do Kan all set to lead Japan
Source: Agencies |
June 4, 2010, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THE man who appeared on the cusp yesterday of becoming Japan's next prime minister is everything Yukio Hatoyama was not - decisive, outspoken and a populist with common roots.
A day after Hatoyama's resignation, Finance Minister Naoto Kan emerged as the only major candidate to lead the country, with potential key rivals throwing their support to the 63-year-old veteran.
The ruling Democratic Party of Japan will hold party elections today to choose a new leader to replace Hatoyama, who succumbed to public disgust over broken campaign promises after just eight months in office.
Because the Democrats control a majority in the more powerful Lower House of parliament, the new party chief will almost certainly be named prime minister.
Kan faces daunting choices in how to lead Japan, which is burdened with massive public debt, a sluggish economy and an aging, shrinking population. He also must quickly revive his party's tarnished image before Upper House elections are held next month.
Within his own party and among analysts, Kan is seen as the Democrats' best hope for restoring confidence in its ability to govern and delivering a viable future.
"He has a record of acting on the basis of his beliefs and not backing down," said Tobias Harris, a political analyst.
"Those are good signs for a prime minister, and I think those are qualities that Hatoyama did not have."
With his ordinary upbringing, Kan would represent a break with the past several prime ministers, including Hatoyama, whose fathers or grandfathers were also PMs.
The son of a businessman, Kan was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture in southwest Japan and graduated from the Tokyo Institute of Technology's science department.
A day after Hatoyama's resignation, Finance Minister Naoto Kan emerged as the only major candidate to lead the country, with potential key rivals throwing their support to the 63-year-old veteran.
The ruling Democratic Party of Japan will hold party elections today to choose a new leader to replace Hatoyama, who succumbed to public disgust over broken campaign promises after just eight months in office.
Because the Democrats control a majority in the more powerful Lower House of parliament, the new party chief will almost certainly be named prime minister.
Kan faces daunting choices in how to lead Japan, which is burdened with massive public debt, a sluggish economy and an aging, shrinking population. He also must quickly revive his party's tarnished image before Upper House elections are held next month.
Within his own party and among analysts, Kan is seen as the Democrats' best hope for restoring confidence in its ability to govern and delivering a viable future.
"He has a record of acting on the basis of his beliefs and not backing down," said Tobias Harris, a political analyst.
"Those are good signs for a prime minister, and I think those are qualities that Hatoyama did not have."
With his ordinary upbringing, Kan would represent a break with the past several prime ministers, including Hatoyama, whose fathers or grandfathers were also PMs.
The son of a businessman, Kan was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture in southwest Japan and graduated from the Tokyo Institute of Technology's science department.
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