Atami City in the eastern part of Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan will hold a mayoral election in 2026. However, a “Chinese who has not yet naturalized” Xu Haoyu has expressed his intention to run for the election, but his poor Japanese ability has caused many jokes. Xu Haoyu was interviewed by senators and guests on a program a few days ago, but he “asked A and answered B” and talked nonsense throughout the whole process. Some outrageous answers made the host burst out laughing.
Facebook fan page “なるみの楽しい日本語課室 (周若珍・Narumi)” posted a post today to share a joke, “Xu Haoyu, a Chinese who has not yet naturalized as a Japanese citizen but publicly said he would run for the mayor of Atami, and his Japanese ability is so bad that the Thunderbolt Planet explodes, but he loves to go on programs everywhere.” On June 18, he was on another program and was electrified by Senator Yanase Hirofumi and guest Watanabe Kiyoka.
The fan page mentioned that when the host asked Xu Haoyu why he wanted to come to Japan from China, Xu said that he liked Japanese culture very much, such as “I am a Cat” and “The Tale of Genji”, etc., but when the host asked why many foreigners like Japanese animation, but he likes literary works, Xu Haoyu changed his words, “When I was a child, Japanese animation was broadcast on TV, and Japanese animation is world-famous.” He also said that he likes things from the old times, such as enka, but when the host asked him to share his favorite singers, he said that he liked “Nakajima Miyuki”.
When Laibin Watabe Kiyoka asked him why he ran for mayor in Japan, Xu Haoyu’s answer was also confusing: Because I can realize my value in Japan, I can form a party, run for election, etc. I started to get involved in politics after moving to Atami four years ago. I knew nothing about politics before, so I didn’t know anything about China and foreign countries. The guest questioned that he could use the identity of a civic group to promote the public interest of Rehai without having to run for mayor. Xu also said, “I have done a lot! I have started a company, worked as a volunteer, published a book, and am still studying at an open university and graduate school!” The answer has almost nothing to do with the public interest of Rehai.
When asked about the Chinese Communist Party, the oppression of the Uyghurs, and the Diaoyutai dispute between China and Japan, Xu Haoyu did not respond normally at all, “These issues have nothing to do with my running for mayor. I don’t speak on these issues.” “I don’t know. I used to be indifferent to politics and I don’t have any knowledge.” The host couldn’t help laughing and said, “Your speech is a bit sympathetic. The political systems of Japan and China are very different. China has no human rights and no democracy, so I think how you evaluate the differences between the two countries is very important.”
In the past, Xu Haoyu claimed on the Internet that he wanted to abolish the emperor system, arrest people who hung the rising sun flag, and close the Yasukuni Shrine. The senator also questioned why Xu made anti-Japanese remarks. Xu Haoyu also said, “Abolishing the emperor is just a political speech, and I just talked about it, and I didn’t take any practical action.” The senator asked why he opposed the emperor system? Xu Haoyu also answered “I don’t know either.”
There was also a hilarious conversation on the show. Senator Yanase Hirofumi was curious about why Xu Haoyu posted a photo of himself holding 4 passports. Xu Haoyu said, “I was drunk when I posted it, but I have quit drinking now.” However, the host immediately slapped him in the face: “Wait, didn’t you drink yesterday!”
The outrageous conversation made the fan page laugh and say, “Although I don’t know why the host knew that he drank yesterday, I laughed like crazy here.” The fan page also analyzed that Xu Haoyu should have done homework before going on the show. After watching the whole show, you will find that as long as he hears a certain keyword, he will recite a fixed answer, so that he did not answer the questions from beginning to end, but just kept reciting the lines.
