it's the ultimate victory for self-made
politician yoshihide suga
who in a career spanning decades has
finally risen to the highest political
office
in the land in contrast to many of
japan's previous prime ministers
his predecessor shinzo abe included
sugar does not come from one of japan's
elite political dynasties
he's the son of a strawberry farmer his
elevation
means a change in style but not in
substance
as a faithful right-hand man to abe he
is expected to follow the same
conservative economic policies while
applying his acknowledged
problem-solving skills
to the continuing covid19 crisis
and the ill-fated tokyo olympics that
the pandemic has delayed
and now threatens to wreck a well-known
figure on the domestic political stage
it was suga as powerful chief cabinet
secretary
who heralded last year's succession of
emperors
unveiling the name of the new imperial
era
his appointment as prime minister was
confirmed at an imperial palace audience
with emperor narahito while hard-working
and reliable
many believe he lacks the charisma
needed for the job
in particular in his dealings with other
world leaders
that's something that comes naturally to
shinzo abe
who leaves the office having set a
record as japan's longest serving prime
minister
i would like to express my sincere
gratitude to all the people who
supported me in both
tough and difficult times next
today the suga administration will be
born i would like to ask for your strong
support
for the ruling ldp party sugar's mission
is to act as continuity
prime minister for the next year before
elections are called
with japan's mounting problems sugar
needs to prove he has the required
leadership skills to do that
rob mcbride al jazeera