Cabinet shakeup may reunite rift-riddled PKB<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The limited Cabinet shakeup announced by President Susilo Bambang
\nYudhoyono on Monday night appears to be a blessing in disguise
\nfor the fractured National Awakening Party (PKB).<\/p>\n
The reshuffle, which included two PKB figures from the two
\nrival factions, is expected to help end the bitter conflict
\nwithin the party founded by former president Abdurrahman \"Gus
\nDur\" Wahid.<\/p>\n
The two ministers from PKB are Gus Dur's defiant nephew,
\nSaifullah Yusuf, and Erman Suparno. They were both nominated for
\ntheir current posts by the Gus Dur camp, which is led by his
\nloyalist nephew Muhaimin Iskandar.<\/p>\n
Its splinter faction is backed by Alwi Shihab who was axed
\nfrom Susilo's Cabinet, with his position as the chief welfare
\nminister being taken over by former chief economics minister
\nAburizal Bakrie, a senior member of the Golkar Party.<\/p>\n
Erman is meanwhile the treasurer of Muhaimin's PKB faction and
\nwas appointed as the new manpower and transmigration minister,
\nreplacing Fahmi Idris.<\/p>\n
Muhaimin, also a House of Representatives deputy speaker,
\nconfirmed that his faction had proposed to Susilo that Saifullah
\nbe retained in the Cabinet and Erman Suparno be named a new
\nCabinet member.<\/p>\n
\"We forget the conflict and we hope all of this will be part
\nof efforts toward togetherness,\" Muhaimin was quoted by Antara as
\nsaying in response to Saifullah being maintained as the state
\nminister for the development of disadvantaged regions. Saifullah
\nis also a key leader of Alwi's PKB camp.<\/p>\n
A source close to the PKB said Saifullah had pledged to
\nreunite with the Muhaimin faction provided that the party
\nsupported his bid to stay in the Cabinet.<\/p>\n
\"Saifullah has signed a deal with Muhaimin to recognize the
\nlatter's leadership of the PKB,\" the source said, adding that
\nAlwi had done the same, although he had to leave the Cabinet to
\npave the way for Aburizal to occupy his ministerial post.<\/p>\n
In reshuffling the Cabinet, analysts said one of the major
\nsticking points faced by Susilo concerned what to do with
\nAburizal, who was strongly backed by Vice President Jusuf Kalla
\nwho also leads Golkar.<\/p>\n
A source close to the reshuffle plan said Alwi agreed to leave
\nthe Cabinet as Kalla promised to help facilitate reconciliations
\namong the PKB rival factions.<\/p>\n
When announcing the Cabinet shakeup, Susilo publicly said he
\nwould assign Alwi, a former foreign minister in the
\nadministration of Gus Dur, as his special envoy for Middle East
\ncooperation.<\/p>\n
Choirul Anam, who recently replaced Alwi as his PKB faction
\nleader, said on Tuesday he could understand the removal of Alwi
\nfrom the Cabinet.<\/p>\n
\"I am sure that in reshuffling the Cabinet, the President has
\nacted wisely in line with his prerogative,\" Anam told Antara in
\nSurabaya, East Java.<\/p>\n
\"Once again I say that there is no problem with the
\nreplacement of Alwi. Nor do I see any particular motive behind
\nhis removal from the Cabinet.\"<\/p>\n
The PKB has been split into two factions since a plenary
\nmeeting of the party decided to dismiss Alwi and Saifullah as its
\nleader and secretary-general respectively.<\/p>\n
The dismissals followed moves in October last year by the two
\nformer loyalists of Gus Dur to join the United Indonesia Cabinet
\nof Susilo, whose presidential candidacy was not supported by the
\nPKB.<\/p>\n
The Supreme Court recently ruled that Alwi's dismissal was
\ninvalid. However, the rival camp said the verdict did not change
\nMuhaimin's PKB leadership since the court did not allow Alwi to
\nuse the party's symbols and flag.<\/p>",
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