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Restaurant area in Shimbashi, Tokyo, where there are few customers = 3rd, around JR Shimbashi Station
The deadline for the declaration of the state of emergency for the new coronavirus, which continues in one of the three prefectures of the Tokyo metropolitan area, is approaching on the 7th, and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has decided to extend it on the 3rd. Worried about economic exhaustion, he has pointed to an early cancellation, but also considered that the pace of decline in newly infected people has slowed and that the governors of 1 metropolitan area and 3 prefectures are cautious about cancellation. There is also a desire to avoid shock at the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics in the summer.
◆ “Re-extension will not be patient”
The prime minister announced to reporters at the official residence on the night of the 3rd that he would consider extending the deadline by two weeks. When asked about the difference with the cancellation of six prefectures like Kansai, he emphasized that the number of newly infected people has not decreased.
When he decided to extend the statement in February, an aide to the prime minister said: “If strong measures are taken, the damage to the economy will be great,” and mentioned the need for early cancellation. Since then, the government has been concerned about the economic downturn, such as seeking to resume the suspended “Go To Travel” tourism support project in a limited area. The Liberal Democratic Party also expressed concern, saying: “If it spreads again, the restaurants that have worked hard through the 7th will be great. The patience to refrain from going out will also be lost.”
However, this time, the Prime Minister repeatedly said: “I want to make my own decision in the end”, and announced that it would be extended again before discussions with the “Advisory Council”, an expert organization that advises the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare and the government’s Corona Countermeasures Subcommittee. At the time of the statement in January, it was criticized that Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister in charge of economic revitalization, had decided to testify after receiving a direct appeal from the governors of the three prefectures early in the New Year, prioritizing the economics It seems he wanted to prevent it from being done. “I didn’t want to be influenced by the local government,” said a PLD executive close to the prime minister.
◆ The true meaning of the “exquisite” extension for 2 weeks
If it is extended by 2 weeks, the deadline is until the 21st of this month. There is an opinion within the PLD that he was aware of the Olympics. This is because the torch relay is scheduled to start on the 25th.
Last year, the Abe administration at the time faced the spread of the infection and decided to postpone the Olympics on March 24, just before the start of the torch relay. This spring, on the contrary, the desire to suppress the infection, raise the declaration and face the relay of the torch comes and goes.
A veteran Liberal Democratic Party legislator noted that “two weeks is exquisite. The government will somehow want to organize the Olympics.”
◆ Number of newly infected people
As Prime Minister Suga told reporters, the number of new corona infections in the metropolitan area has not decreased. The average for the last 7 days was 3 days, which was higher than the previous day in all 3 prefectures, including Tokyo.
Looking at the 7-day average number of newly infected people, the number in Tokyo was about 819 on February 1, but it decreased to about 295 on February 24. However, after that, the decline has slowed, and there are days in which it exceeds the previous day. The number of people on March 3 was about 278, which is about double the goal of 140 people per day.
Kanagawa Prefecture once fell below 120 on February 18, but rose to around 121 again on February 22. After that, keep going up and down.
Chiba prefecture has also had around 120 people in the last week. Saitama prefecture is the only prefecture in Tokyo with an average of less than 100 people over 7 days, but on March 3 it rose again to 98 people. (Mikihiko Ueno, Fumihiko Kozakai)
