2. Making Tokyo the best city in the world

This regular session of the metropolitan assembly is my first since I took office. Please allow me to state my policy, centering on my vision for Tokyo.

I firmly believe that Tokyo, the capital of Japan, is the source of our country’s growth and development, and should be a model for major cities not only in Japan, but the world as well. But according to a recent ranking of the world’s major cities announced by a private research institute, Tokyo is resigned to fourth place, following London at first place, New York at second, and Paris at third. Using the Olympic and Paralympic Games in six years as a goal to aim for, I wish to take Tokyo to the top. To this end, during this term of office, I will focus on making Tokyo the best city in three specific areas.

The world’s safest city

First, I will work to make Tokyo the world’s safest city.

The main mission of the governor is to protect the lives and assets of the residents of Tokyo. We must be fully prepared for an earthquake, including one directly hitting the capital. The main roads in Tokyo will be the major arteries crucial for rescue activities during a disaster and the following recovery and restoration activities. We will promote the seismic renovations of buildings along the roads and the removal of utility poles to ensure that these roads do not become blocked. In order to minimize damages from fire as well, we will work with the relevant local ward offices to strongly promote the improvement of districts with close-set wooden houses, and will also construct roads to stop the spread of fire. In addition to bolstering firefighting capabilities, we will enhance the disaster response capacities of the community, such as that of neighborhood associations and residents associations. The ability of people to help themselves and each other will also be raised to the fullest, such as by encouraging households to stockpile food and water.

When I was the minister of health, labour and welfare, we came up against an unknown threat—a new strain of influenza. From my experience then as well, I understand that the provision of accurate information is key to crisis management. Nothing can bring greater fear to people than not being able to grasp the circumstances in which they find themselves. On the other hand, if they can understand the situation, the Japanese are astonishingly preserving, and initiate actions by working in concert. In the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake, people joined forces and acted systematically to address the situation. At the time of the new strain of influenza, we were able to prevent infection from spreading because everyone made thorough efforts to wash their hands and gargle, and, moreover, because close contact between school children was avoided by swift and appropriate school closures. I think the Japanese are truly amazing. And, the higher the source of information, the more reliable it is. As this makes communications from the leader of the organization vital, I promise that in the event of a disaster, I myself will take the lead and promptly respond to the situation.

Moreover, it is no exaggeration to say that all kinds of risks lie in Tokyo. If these crises become reality, the damages would be enormous. We will thus elevate risk management of the capital to that of the world’s highest level by fortifying our counterterrorism system and other measures through the concerted efforts of organizations including the Metropolitan Police Department, Tokyo Fire Department, central government, Tokyo’s municipalities, and the private sector.

The world’s best city in terms of welfare

Second, I will make Tokyo the world’s best city in terms of welfare.
My experience caring for my mother who had dementia was what put me on the path to politics, because I strongly felt that no one should have to go through such hardship and pain that can even drive families apart. “Government is for the weak, not for the strong.” This is my political philosophy.

Tokyo’s population will begin decreasing after peaking in 2020, the year we host the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Moreover, in 2025, one out of four Tokyo citizens will be senior citizens over 65 years old. And the baby boomers born after the end of the war, like me, will be over 75. Faced by this reality, we are prone to thinking that a graying society is a bleak one bearing heavy burdens. That is why government must make preparations based on a hard look at reality and imbue society with dreams and hopes by combining the three strengths of “self-support,” “mutual support,” and “public support.”

I wish to create a Tokyo where everyone can sincerely feel happy that they were born in Tokyo, that they were able to live, raise children, and continue to work in Tokyo, and nearing the end, when they look back on their lives, can say that they had a truly fulfilling and happy life in Tokyo. If health and longevity is a universal aspiration of mankind, we Japanese have come the closest to this vision. By expanding opportunities for everyone to work and participate actively in society, and by harnessing the momentum of the Olympic and Paralympic Games to make sports more approachable to the citizens of Tokyo, we will aim for a society where people can enjoy good health their whole lives long.

In order to raise the vitality of society, the active participation of women is indispensable. Up to now, women may have been unable to fully demonstrate their potentials because they were too busy raising children or nursing their elderly parents. These are problems that men should also be actively involved in. We will thus promote a work-life balance and strive to build an environment where both men and women can be involved in rearing their children and in caring for their parents, while continuing to work.

Furthermore, during my 4-year term of office, we will increase the number of daycare services so that there are no longer any children on the waiting list—there are currently 8,000 children waiting to enter a facility. With regard to carrying for the elderly, based on the concept of integrated community care, we will have services covering every part of the community as if the entire area is a care facility. This will be done by bolstering systems for home health care and custodial care, and for the community to watch over senior citizens. At the same time, we will apply a lot of ingenuity, such as using metropolitan-owned land, to significantly increase the number of openings at special nursing homes for the aged. I think it would be better for both the person getting care and his or her family to have a wide selection of choices. Caring for an elderly relation should not have to be taken on by the family members alone. They should be able to get help from care professionals and the community. This allows the family to be more mentally and physically relaxed, so that they can be more loving. I want to build this kind of environment.

The world’s best ever Olympic and Paralympic Games

Third, I will work to make the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games the world’s best ever Games. Looking back at Japan’s modern and current history, there were two times when Japan was forced to undergo significant changes due to external pressure. The first was the arrival of Commodore Matthew Perry and his fleet of “black ships” in the mid-nineteenth century, and the second was Japan’s defeat in the Pacific War in 1945. However, this time, in the 21st century, I hope to create a wave of change that starts from the center of Japan—its capital, Tokyo. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games provide the perfect opportunity for this. In the city rankings that I just mentioned, London, not New York, is ranked at No. 1. The Olympic and Paralympic Games proved to be the catalyst that pushed London to the top. And now, it is Tokyo’s turn.

I attended the closing ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympics and returned to Tokyo yesterday. Mr. Toshiaki Yoshino, president of the Metropolitan Assembly, and I met with IOC President Thomas Bach, Vice-President John Coates, and other members of the IOC executive board. Along with requesting their cooperation, we promised them that Tokyo will be sure to deliver a safe Games. We also had the opportunity to speak directly with many IOC members, and I believe that we were able to build a basic relationship of trust. This visit enabled me to see how Sochi was striking a balance between hospitality toward the athletes and visitors and achieving full security for the Games, beginning with strict security checks. It also let me directly sense the problems that arise in communications in languages other than Russian. I hope to apply these experiences to the success of the Tokyo Games. We have six and a half years until the Games; the organizing committee, the JOC and others in the sporting world, government, and businesses will take on this task through an “all Japan” formation.

In order to fulfill its mandate as the host city, the TMG will steadily advance preparations such as constructing the competition venues and road infrastructure, and ensuring safe management of the Games. We will promote barrier-free urban development and install gates along the platforms of train stations so that senior citizens, disabled persons, and everyone can rest assured when moving around the city. We will work to remove the “language barriers” that non-Japanese face. In this way, we will apply both hard and soft measures to make the streets of Tokyo barrier free. We will also promote the introduction of renewable energies. And we will actively inform the world about Japan’s environmental technologies and other leading technologies, as well as our warm “omotenashi” hospitality, and the unique Japanese culture, cultivated by our seasonally-changing, rich natural environment.

I also hope to bring together the powers of the citizens of Tokyo and Japan to make the 2020 Olympics the best in history. The strong support of the honorable members of this Assembly will be very highly appreciated.

As the engine driving the Japanese economy

The preparations for the Tokyo Games will act as a catalyst for a stronger economy, which will lead to the creation of new wealth; this will then be used as financial resources for welfare, health care, and disaster mitigation and public safety measures. Moreover, the fruit of these accomplishments will spread throughout the nation, including to the Tohoku area hit by the earthquake and tsunami in 2011, and bring vibrancy to all of Japan. Japan’s economy will get back on the path to growth. This is the mission of Tokyo as the capital.

Tokyo has a wealth of superb talent and companies with excellent technologies. We must fully draw upon these potentials. While building critical infrastructure such as the loop roads and the north-south roads of the Tama area, we need to take appropriate measures for aging infrastructure such as the Metropolitan Expressway, which was built during Japan’s period of high economic growth. The functions of Haneda Airport, Tokyo’s gateway to the world, must also be strengthened. We will aggressively implement industrial policies to support Tokyo’s small- and medium-sized companies, and through the National Strategic Economic Growth Area, we will also make Tokyo the most business-friendly city in the world. Tokyo will thus be the engine strongly driving the Japanese economy.

Recently, a Riken team of scientists led by Haruko Obokata succeeded in creating pluripotent stem cells using an easier technique. This was the groundbreaking STAP cell. We must work to cultivate such young and outstanding talent. By promoting educational reform, Tokyo will take the initiative in raising global talent that can lead the world.

Formulation of a new vision

I instructed my staff to start studies on the development of concrete policies on five topics. These are measures to address the graying population, which I had strongly called for during the campaign, comprehensive transportation policies, environmental policies including the expansion of renewable energies, promotion of the arts and culture, and promotion of the Tama area and the islands of Tokyo. While discussing these policies with you, we will formulate a new vision within the year. This will clarify our future vision of Tokyo, and will indicate the targets that we shall aim for and the roadmap leading to these goals.