Overview
- The organizer said the phrase took the top spot with “female prime minister” sharing the honor.
- Takaichi made the remark after her Oct. 4 Liberal Democratic Party leadership win before becoming Japan’s first female prime minister later that month.
- At the Tokyo ceremony, she said the line expressed determination to serve and was not an endorsement of long hours.
- Lawyers for victims of karoshi criticized her earlier comments, including pledging to abandon work-life balance and to make colleagues work like a workhorse.
- Other notable entries referenced “old, old, old rice” released from 2021 stockpiles during shortages and phrases tied to a rise in bear attacks under looser shooting rules.