TOKYO (JAPAN) – Japan’s government is pushing ahead with the distribution of masks, which have been criticised widely, despite having commercially made masks in the market. This has further lead to protests on social media.
Tagged as the “Abenomask”, meaning Abe’s mask, it is a pun on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s “Abenomics” programme. Abenomask is a washable gauze mask, however, it has received flak for being ill fitting with quality issues.
Around 130 million masks have been distributed to households and the government is still trying to send out 80 million from a planned 157 million. It would be made available to facilities such as nursing homes and day care centres.
“Using taxes like this is no laughing matter,” comedian Zenjiro said in a Twitter post. His tweet came after an Asahi newspaper reported about the distribution of the masks, which has been continuing.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga threw light on the programme, told, “The masks are relatively low cost and help curb demand.”
With increased testing, Japan has seen a rise in coronavirus infections, and as of Monday, Tokyo had reported more than 200 new cases in the last week.
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field.