The governor of Tokyo will return to full salary for 10 years and will receive more than 20 million yuan less | International

2026/6/20 12:16 (Updated 6/20 12:27) Please agree to our privacy policy to enable the news listening function. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike. (Central News Agency file photo) (Central News Agency Tokyo, comprehensive foreign news report on the 20th) Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike has only received half salary since taking office in 2016 to fulfill her campaign promise, and this self-cut salary measure will end at the end of July. After that, she will jump from the lowest paid local chief in Japan to the highest paid local chief. The “Asahi Shimbun” reported today that when Koike ran for Tokyo governor in 2016, he advocated “reforming from within” and promised to only receive half salary after being elected. After she took office as the governor of Tokyo for the first time in August 2016, she proposed a half-salary ordinance to the Metropolitan Assembly and it was passed. This regulation is limited to one year, but bills to extend this measure are proposed every year. Japanese media simply estimate that in 10 years, this approach will reduce the cost by more than 100 million yen (approximately NT$20.2 million). The salary halving regulations passed in June last year will expire at the end of July this year. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government will not propose an amendment to extend the ordinance. Koike explained to the “Asahi Shimbun”, “The Metropolitan Council’s faction asked me to explain, ‘Is it appropriate to say that although I am very active, my salary is the lowest in the country?'” The Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly passed an ordinance to halve the salary of the Tokyo Governor in 2016. According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Koike’s monthly salary before he cut his salary in half was 1,517,000 yen (approximately NT$303,000). If other allowances are included, the annual salary will reach approximately 31.33 million yen (approximately NT$6,272,000). In addition, according to a survey by Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in April 2025, among Japan’s 47 prefectures, the governor of Tokyo has the lowest monthly salary. However, if the half-salary measure ends, Koike will become the Japanese local chief with the highest monthly salary. Koike told the “Asahi Shimbun”, “As a symbol of metropolitan reform, the parliament has also approved the special measure of halving salary for some time.” She also said that even if the half-salary measure ends, “I will not change my position on metropolitan reform.” The Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly has followed Koike’s lead since 2017 and has cut members’ salaries by 20%. The reason is that if members do not do so, their annual salary will exceed that of Koike. The measure of self-cutting of members’ salaries ended in July last year, and they resumed receiving full salary. (Compiled by: Yang Weijing) 1150620 Support Central News Agency’s choice to stand with the facts. Every donation you make is a small amount of support to protect press freedom. Download the Central News Agency’s “First-hand News” APP to get the latest news in real time. The text, pictures and audio and video of this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.

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