For Japan’s Covid-19 vaccine tsar Taro Kono, will a successful vaccination drive put him one step closer to prime ministership?

Reform minister Kono was handed the tricky vaccination portfolio after a poll placed him as the public’s top choice for prime minister

It’s caused a buzz with analysts speculating whether Kono’s success would boost support for PM Yoshihide Suga or help him attain the top leadership role

Reading Time:4 minutes

Taro Kono speaks during a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan in June last year. Photo: EPA

Published: 2:30pm, 26 Jan 2021Updated: 3:07pm, 26 Jan 2021

He has anointed Pokemon and Hello Kitty as special envoys to promote the city of Osaka for the 2025 World Expo, and has a notoriously sweet tooth, with macarons a particular favourite – but Japan’s Taro Kono also has a combative streak, with some comparing his Twitter use to that of former US president Donald Trump.

Kono, 58, has had strong words for both South Korea and China, and has shut down people that disagree with his opinions on platforms such as Twitter with withering retorts or simply by blocking them.

On top of his duties as minister for reform, Kono, the son of former foreign minister Yohei Kono, has recently been given the task of overseeing the roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccine to the nation of 126 million starting at the end of February. On Tuesday, Kono, speaking at a regular press conference, did not reveal any costs for the vaccinations.

He had previously said Pfizer’s vaccine would be used for the first shots, starting with medical workers, with the next priority being to vaccinate the elderly, those with health conditions and elderly care facility workers.

Kono’s promotion to vaccine tsar coincided with his emergence as the voting public’s favourite to take over from Yoshihide Suga as Japan’s next prime minister.

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x