Decision at the Temporary General Meeting on the 15th... Key Positions Likely Distributed to 5 Supporting Factions
Cabinet Appointments Expected After Prime Minister Election on the 16th... Aso and Motegi Expected to Remain
"Kato Considered for Chief Cabinet Secretary" Reports Also Emerge
[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyeon-jin] Yoshihide Suga, the new president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), will make personnel appointments for LDP executives as his first move after taking office. The party's four key positions (Secretary-General, Chairperson of the Policy Research Council, Chairperson of the General Council, and Chairperson of the Election Strategy Committee) will be evenly appointed from each faction, with core positions such as Secretary-General being retained.
In the cabinet appointments to be made after the prime minister is selected, it is expected that Taro Aso, Japan's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, will be retained, while the plan to appoint Katsunobu Kato, Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, as Chief Cabinet Secretary is reportedly under discussion.
According to NHK and other sources on the 15th, President Suga will decide on LDP executive appointments through an extraordinary party meeting that day. Among the major faction leaders, Toshihiro Nikai, Secretary-General who supported President Suga when he was Chief Cabinet Secretary and acted as a 'kingmaker,' and Hiroshi Moriyama, Chairperson of the Diet Affairs Committee, have been virtually retained. It is reported that President Suga expressed this stance at the party executive meeting and the General Council immediately after his election the previous day.
Toshihiro Nikai, who leads the Nikai faction (47 members), the fourth largest faction in the LDP, is the longest-serving Secretary-General in the history of the LDP in Japan. The Secretary-General, the party's second-in-command, holds key roles such as personnel appointments, fund management, and election nominations. On the 7th, President Suga stated, "(Nikai) Secretary-General firmly organizes the party, so he is a very reliable figure," showing strong trust. At a press conference immediately after his election, he also mentioned Secretary-General Nikai and Deputy Prime Minister Aso as "two important figures in government administration."
For the successor to Fumio Kishida as Chairperson of the Policy Research Council, Hakubun Shimomura, head of the LDP's largest faction, the Hosoda faction (98 members), is expected to be appointed. Tsutomu Sato, a former Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications belonging to the Aso faction (54 members), is likely to be appointed Chairperson of the General Council. Additionally, Daimei Yamaguchi, head of the organizational movement headquarters of the Takeshita faction (54 members), is expected to be appointed Chairperson of the Election Strategy Committee. Seiko Noda, a former Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications without faction affiliation, is reportedly to be appointed acting Secretary-General.
Foreign media in Japan explained, "President Suga has appointed one person from each of the five factions that supported him." The Mainichi Shimbun reported, "For President Suga, who won a landslide victory, the next issue will be party and cabinet appointments as the first hurdle," adding, "The five factions that supported him are demanding appointments based on merit, and if their demands are not accepted, they are even showing signs of rebellion."
Since President Suga has declared that he will inherit the policies of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, most of the key personnel in the newly formed cabinet are expected to be retained. President Suga plans to be inaugurated as prime minister after the prime ministerial election at the extraordinary Diet session convened on the 16th, and immediately launch the new cabinet.
As President Suga mentioned directly at a press conference, some ministers including Deputy Prime Minister Aso are expected to be retained in the cabinet. The Asahi Shimbun analyzed, "The decision to keep Deputy Prime Minister Aso, who has supported the Abe administration, as a key minister is aimed at stabilizing the administration." There is also strong speculation that Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Olympic Minister Seiko Hashimoto will retain their posts in the next cabinet.
Regarding the Chief Cabinet Secretary, who will be the key figure in the cabinet appointments, Kyodo News reported that coordination has begun toward appointing Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare Katsunobu Kato. The Chief Cabinet Secretary is the second-in-command at the Prime Minister's Office and serves as the government's spokesperson. Minister Kato said at a press conference after the cabinet meeting that day that he had not heard anything special from President Suga. NHK also reported that the appointment is being promoted centered on a former Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary who worked with him during the Abe administration.
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