Shunichi Suzuki (governor)

Shunichi Suzuki
鈴木 俊一
Governor of Tokyo
In office
23 April 1979 – 22 April 1995
Preceded byRyokichi Minobe
Succeeded byYukio Aoshima
Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary
In office
14 June 1958 – 9 June 1959
Prime MinisterNobusuke Kishi
Preceded byEijō Okazaki
Succeeded byKōshō Ogasa
Personal details
Born(1910-11-06)November 6, 1910
Ōe, Yamagata, Japan
DiedMay 14, 2010(2010-05-14) (aged 99)
Tokyo, Japan
Political partyIndependent
Alma materTokyo Imperial University
OccupationHome Ministry bureaucrat

Shunichi Suzuki (鈴木 俊一, Suzuki Shun'ichi, 6 November 1910 – 14 May 2010) was a Japanese politician and bureaucrat who served as governor of Tokyo from 1979 to 1995.

Biography

Suzuki graduated from Tokyo Imperial University and worked in the Japanese Home Ministry from 1933 to 1947, and then in the Ministry of Home Affairs, where he worked on the development of the Local Autonomy Law, public election laws and other postwar governance rules. He served as Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary under Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi. Governor Ryotaro Azuma appointed Suzuki Vice Governor of Tokyo in 1959, and he served in this capacity until 1967, during which time he was instrumental in the planning of the 1964 Summer Olympics. Azuma declined to run for a third term in 1967, following which Suzuki served in several other roles, including as chairman of the Osaka Expo '70 planning committee.[1][2]

Suzuki was elected as governor in 1979 with the support of the Liberal Democratic Party. As governor, his most noted accomplishment was the development of the Odaiba area on Tokyo Bay. He also planned the relocation of the Tokyo metropolitan government to its current location in Shinjuku,[3] and the development of the Tokyo International Forum and the Edo-Tokyo Museum.[4] He had planned a major exposition (世界都市博覧会) to be held in Odaiba in 1996, but the plan was cancelled by his successor Yukio Aoshima.[1][2]

Suzuki died on 14 May 2010. Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara presided over his funeral services at Aoyama Cemetery.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b "評伝・鈴木俊一氏 地方自治と半世紀". 日本経済新聞. 15 May 2010. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  2. ^ a b "鈴木俊一、元都知事が死去". 読売新聞. 15 May 2010. Archived from the original on 20 December 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  3. ^ "都政、開発重視の壁に 急激な少子高齢化対応も課題". 日本経済新聞. 20 December 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  4. ^ 細野, 透氏 (7 March 2007). "サムライ・黒川紀章の乱". Safety Japan. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  5. ^ "故鈴木俊一氏の都葬に250人参列". 日本経済新聞. 28 May 2010. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
Political offices
Preceded by
Eijō Okazaki
Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary
1958–1959
Succeeded by
Kōshō Ogasa
Preceded by Governor of Tokyo
1979–1995
Succeeded by
Other offices
Preceded by
Ryōzō Okuda
President of the National Governors' Association
1980–1995
Succeeded by
Shirō Nagano
Preceded by President of the Japan Good Deed Association
1990–2004
Succeeded by
Kōshō Kawamura