Okinawa Vice-Governor Jahana to retire, General Affairs Chief Ikeda to be promoted to the position. (27ja22)

This paper learned on 26 January that Governor Denny Tamaki has solidified his decision to appoint General Affairs Chief Takeku Ikeda (60) to succeed Vice-Governor Kiichiro Jahana who is slated to retire at the end of March. Governor Tamaki is expected to submit the proposal to the Ordinary February Prefectural Assembly Session meeting on 15 February.


Ikeda has served as the governor’s chief of the public affairs office, which deals with US Military base issues. He has also gotten involved in issues surrounding the new base construction at Henoko in Nago, an important topic for the prefectural government. Moreover, having been involved in comparative research with 4 NATO European nations, he has a deep understanding of the Japan-US Status of Forces Agreement.


In November of last year, Governor Tamaki rejected a request submitted by the Okinawa Defense Bureau for permission to make changes in the landfill at Henoko. Among attempts to counter this, the Defense Bureau requested an investigation by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transportation, and Tourism. This struggle between the Prefecture and the National Government is ongoing. Since the base question is going to be an important issue for the Tamaki government from here on also, the governor seems to have judged that Ikeda is appropriate for the role as successor to Jahana.


As for Ikeda’s replacement as General Affairs Chief, Director of Commerce and Labor Noboru Kakazu and Director of Planning Chikara (=力?) Miyagi seem to be at the top of the list.


Original Japanese article: Okinawa Times, published Thursday 27 January 2022 at 08:51

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/e07a34cff1bfde5749b380dfe3c7318ab86166aa


Translator’s note:

Denny in the News: news about Okinawan Governor Denny Tamaki.

Denny Tamaki is the governor of Okinawa Prefecture in Japan. Although Okinawa is important as an international tourist destination and a key element in strategic US Military Forces, its governor receives very little coverage in the Japanese press and almost none in the English language media. 

  1. This blog hopes to  translate one news article a day on the governor.  It is unsponsored and unauthorized. The translator simply hopes to improve his skills and perhaps give the governor an English speaking audience. 

  2. Any suggestion on improving the translation will be gratefully accepted. However, please leave political comments for another forum.

  3. Where they occur, words and phrases in Ryukyuan (the Okinawan language) are rendered in italics and translated in parentheses. Names  whose readings are uncertain are rendered as Name (=Kanji?) as in Nagayuki (=長行?). Any corrections in such instances would be gratefully appreciated.

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