Just as recently re-elected U.S. President Barack Obama struggles to get his top choices in place at the U.S. Departments of Defense and Treasury, newly elected Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is having personnel challenges of his own. One choice by Abe, however, may well offer him a "twofer" — a chance to both reshape Japan and one of Asia's leading multilateral institutions.
If media reports are accurate, Abe and Finance Minister Taro Aso have still to agree on a nominee for governor of the Bank of Japan (BOJ), a particularly critical post given "Abenomics" fiscal policy goals and the BOJ's 2 percent inflation target.
The nomination to run Japan's central bank must be submitted to Japan's parliament for approval, much as the U.S. president's nominations for top government posts must go to the U.S. Senate for its "advice and consent." Current BOJ governor Masaaki Shirakawa and his two deputies are scheduled to step down March 19, increasing the pressure for prompt action if vacancies are to be avoided.