Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga's remark that the sudden rise in Tokyo's novel coronavirus cases is a "Tokyo problem" has caused a feud with Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike.
The remark by the government's spokesman over the weekend referred to the fact that more than half of recently confirmed virus carriers are in the capital.
Koike on Monday expressed her clear discontent, saying to reporters at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government office that the countermeasures against the coronavirus "is a national problem," in the context of the central government's Go To Campaign to boost domestic travel demand.
"Tokyo has the largest number of tests," Koike added. "That's why many tested positive and many of them are asymptomatic."
She also warned about the possibility that the campaign will promote traffic of asymptomatic coronavirus carriers.
"How will the central government ensure balance [between the economy and prevention of the virus' spread]?" she said. "It's like turning on the heater and air conditioner simultaneously."
Suga said in a speech in Chitose, Hokkaido, on Saturday, "This problem [on the increase of new carriers of the coronavirus] is so concentrated in Tokyo that there is no exaggeration to say it is undoubtedly a Tokyo problem."
Behind Suga's remarks seems to be what a high-ranking government official calls "strong distrust of how the metropolitan government is handling the situation," referring to the fact that Tokyo is unable to contact some of the infected people.
In explaining his remarks, Suga said at a Monday press conference, "It's based on the fact that Tokyo accounts for more than half of the new infections nationwide."
As for the Go To Campaign, he reconfirmed that the government will go ahead with it as planned, saying, "We will achieve both prevention of the spread of the infection and socioeconomic activities."
If the infection in Tokyo worsens, the central and metropolitan governments will have to cooperate in requesting businesses to suspend their operations and on other subjects, and thus some government officials voiced concern over the feud, with a senior health ministry official saying, "Conflict is futile."
Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister in charge of economic revitalization who is heading the coronavirus response, said at a press conference on Monday that the Saitama prefectural government's request that establishments for wining and dining with inadequate measures against infection be suspended is "an effective tactic."
"We have to think about whether we should do this in the whole of the metropolitan area or only in Tokyo," he added.
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