Concerns over the health of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe after the country’s leader returned to a Tokyo hospital for the second time in a week on Monday.
Abe, 65, visited Keio University Hospital in Tokyo on Monday morning, where he spent three hours with doctors. Last Monday, the prime minister spent more than seven hours at the medical facility.
The Japanese leader tried to allay all concerns about his health after news of his second hospital visit hit airwaves, telling reporters outside his official residence that he had returned to the doctor to learn test results from the week before.
He added that he had done some follow-up tests, and said he hoped to talk about “that kind of thing” at some point in the future, without indicating when.
He added, “I want to take care of my health and do my best on my job.”
Nippon TV, a Japanese news broadcaster, reported Monday that despite Abe’s claim that he had been hospitalized for examinations, he was in fact being treated for ulcerative colitis.
Abe has publicly acknowledged that he had the chronic illness, and even resigned from his first term in 2007, when it had deteriorated to a point where he could no longer govern. He re-entered the political arena in 2012.
However, his staff have denied recent reports that staff have grown worried that the job had become too stressful for Abe in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
In recent weeks, Abe has prevented extensive public appearances, and has not held a full-length news conference since mid-June.
He also rejected calls from the opposition to start a new session of parliament to tackle the coronavirus pandemic.
Even his deputy minister, Taro Aso, began acknowledging this month that the Japanese leader was in “rough form”.
However, Aso came to Abe’s defense, claiming that it was his work pressure that was causing the health concerns.
‘It’s not surprising [someone] not taking so long to rest in rough shape, ”he said.
Earlier this month, Akira Amari, chairwoman of the Liberal Democratic Party’s tax panel, warned that Abe ‘has a strong sense of responsibility and feels it is wrong to take a break. We have to force him to rest, even just a few days. “
However, Abe’s cabinet has insisted that there is no reason to worry about his health, with Health Minister Katsunobu Kato saying he was “not at all” concerned about his health.
The renewed concerns about Abe’s health come the same day he broke the record, previously set by his great-uncle, Eisaku Sato, for the most consecutive days as prime minister.
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