Prime Minister

Yesterday, the 内閣総理大臣 (Prime Minister) of Japan, 福田康夫 (Yasuo Fukuda) resigned after only eleven months in office.

If a Japanese Prime Minister feels that he’s not going a good job and holding back the country’s growth, he’ll often step down.

I have lived in Japan since 1990. In that time, Japan has had eleven Prime Ministers. 海部俊樹 (Toshiki Kaifu) was Japan’s Prime Minister when I came to Japan.

Of the 11 Prime Ministers that I’ve seen, some completed their full-term…one (Koizumi) even did three terms. One (Keizou Obuchi) died in office.
But most of them resigned before their term ended.

In contrast, when I came to Japan, George Bush (Sr.) was the アメリカ合衆国大統領 (President of the United States). After him was Clinton’s two terms, then George Bush (Jr.)’s two terms.

Only three Presidents in the same eighteen year period.

Unlike the Japanese Prime Ministers, America’s Presidents finish their full-term without resigning…whether anyone feels he’s doing a good job or not.
I’m sure many people have different opinions about which system is better. I think, though, many people get too emotional about politics…so I’ll keep my opinions private.