Japan Pm Shinzo Abe in hospital for checks following health concerns

Japanese PM Shinzo Abe entered a hospital in Tokyo on Monday for what an aide said was a checkup.

Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the war memorial service on Saturday. Picture: AFP

Japanese Prime Minister Prime Minister Shinzo Abe entered a hospital in Tokyo on Monday for what an aide said was a check-up, following recent concerns about his health.

Television footage showed a car bringing Mr Abe, 65, to Keio University Hospital around 10.30am. His most recent public appearance was on Saturday, when he spoke at a ceremony commemorating the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II.

Public broadcaster NHK quoted a secretary to the Prime Minister as saying Mr Abe was receiving a check-up at the hospital to ensure he would be in good shape after taking a scheduled holiday this week. NHK didn’t say what doctors were examining.

At Saturday’s ceremony, Mr Abe looked and sounded generally the same as usual, but speculation about his health has been increasing because he has scaled back his working hours and ­walked more slowly than usual when entering his office.

After first becoming prime minister in 2006, Mr Abe had to resign after a year in office, in part because of a chronic bowel illness. After stepping down, he said a drug was helping keep the problem in check.

Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, closes his eyes as he observes a moment of silence during the 75th anniversary of the Nagasaki atomic bombing on August 9. Picture: Getty Images

He returned as prime minister in December 2012 and has served continuously since then. Combining the two stints, he has served longer than any other Japanese prime minister. Later this month, he is also poised to break the record for longest continuous term as prime minister which was set by his great uncle, Eisaku Sato, prime minister from 1964 to 1972.

Mr Abe worked nearly continuously since the coronavirus pandemic broke out early this year, leading the government’s response and holding frequent news conferences before and during a state of emergency he declared in April. He lifted it in May, only to see a second wave of cases break out weeks later.

In recent weeks, he has sharply curtailed his working hours, according to his daily schedule. Despite falling poll ratings and criticism over his handling of the virus, he has made only short public statements and his allies have resisted calls by opposition parties to reconvene parliament to address the pandemic.

Mr Abe simultaneously serves as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and his term in that post expires in September nest year. He has said he doesn’t plan to run for re-election. Under the LDP’s customary practice, the next party president would also take over the prime minister’s job assuming the party maintains its control of the Diet.

The Wall Street Journal