58% of Japanese Citizens "Do Not Trust Government's COVID-19 Response"

▲Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] It has been found that the Japanese public's trust in the Abe administration has significantly declined due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) crisis.

According to a survey conducted by the international consulting firm Kext CNC from the 27th of last month to the 1st of this month, when asked "How has your trust in the government's response changed over the past two weeks?" 58% of Japanese respondents answered "It has decreased."

Only 6% of Japanese respondents said their trust had increased.

Among foreign governments, the United States and the United Kingdom were identified as countries where trust in the government has fallen. However, the gap between responses indicating a decline in trust and those indicating an increase was 12 percentage points for the U.S. and 3 percentage points for the U.K., which is significantly lower than Japan's 52 percentage points.

On the other hand, Germany and Sweden showed higher trust in their governments' responses, with trust exceeding distrust by 13 percentage points and 3 percentage points, respectively.

When asked whether their government is providing necessary support to businesses, only 13% of Japanese respondents answered "Yes."

In contrast, 65%, 51%, 44%, and 40% of respondents in the U.K., Germany, the U.S., and Sweden, respectively, said their governments are providing necessary support.

The survey was conducted among approximately 1,000 residents aged 18 and over in each country.

Regarding the survey results, Asahi Shimbun reported that "Kext CNC, which conducted the survey, interpreted that the Japanese public feels the Japanese government has not demonstrated clear leadership and has not presented an exit strategy or similar plans."

Kext CNC also pointed out that in Japan, the application procedures to receive support are complicated and it takes a long time to receive the support funds.

Public dissatisfaction with the government among Japanese citizens is also confirmed by surveys conducted by Japanese media outlets.

In a public opinion poll conducted by Nihon Keizai Shimbun from the 8th to the 10th of this month, only 13% of those who said they support the Shinzo Abe Cabinet evaluated Prime Minister Abe as having leadership.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.