Japan, Suga Acting Prime Minister Top Candidate Aso... Kono Seen as 'Second-in-Command' in Parliament

On the 16th, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga (center front row) and the new cabinet ministers are taking a photo.
[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] With the inauguration of the Yoshihide Suga Japanese Cabinet, Taro Aso, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, has been designated as the official 'number two' of the Cabinet. However, in the National Diet, Taro Kono, Minister in charge of Administrative Reform, was decided to sit in a higher seat than Deputy Prime Minister Aso.

According to the Yomiuri Shimbun on the 17th, the Japanese government designated Deputy Prime Minister Aso as the first priority temporary proxy in the absence of the Prime Minister at the first Cabinet meeting held the previous day. If Prime Minister Suga visits a foreign country or is unable to perform his duties due to illness, Deputy Prime Minister Aso will act on his behalf.

The second priority temporary proxy is Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato, third is Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, fourth is Minister in charge of Administrative Reform Taro Kono, and fifth is Minister Seiko Hashimoto in charge of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

However, in the plenary session hall of the House of Representatives and House of Councillors, Minister in charge of Administrative Reform Kono was seated in a higher position than Deputy Prime Minister Aso. In the ministerial seats of the plenary session hall, when facing the members' seats from the chairperson's seat at the center podium, the Prime Minister's seat is on the left side of the podium, and the so-called 'number two' seat is on the right side of the podium. Minister Kono was assigned to this seat. Deputy Prime Minister Aso was seated in the number three seat, which is to the left of the Prime Minister.

This seating arrangement draws more attention as Prime Minister Suga emphasized at his first press conference held the previous day that regulatory reform would be a core task of the administration, highlighting the role of Minister Kono in charge of Administrative Reform.

In the Prime Minister's Office reception room where Cabinet members gather before the Cabinet meeting begins, Deputy Prime Minister Aso will sit to the left of the Prime Minister in the number two seat, and Foreign Minister Motegi will sit to the right of the Prime Minister in the number three seat. This is the same as during the Shinzo Abe Cabinet.