Democrats, Golkar at odds over reshuffle
Ridwan Max Sijabat and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
The Democrat Party and the Golkar Party, both main supporters of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla, seem to be at loggerheads over a Cabinet reshuffle that many pundits have been demanding to improve what they say is the government's poor performance.
The minority Democrat Party is calling on the President to replace all poorly performing ministers, and is seeking two more ministerial posts.
Golkar, which finished first in the legislative election last year, has recommended some swapping of portfolios, but insists that a reshuffle should be the last resort.
However, the Democrat Party's deputy leader Achmad Mubarok said Susilo, who is the party's chief patron, needed to reshuffle the Cabinet to save his government.
"We are the main supporter of SBY and, therefore, we deserve two more seats in the Cabinet," Mubarok said during a discussion to evaluate Susilo's performance during his first year in office on Friday.
Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik and State Minister of Administrative Reform Taufik Effendi are the only representatives of the party in the Cabinet.
Mabarok recalled the chaos surrounding the selection of ministers last year, which he said had contributed to the government's perceived poor performance.
Some survey institutes have suggested a Cabinet reshuffle, especially of economics ministers, saying that these ministers had failed to address the country's economic difficulties.
Deputy Golkar chairman Burhanuddin Napitupulu insisted, however, that a Cabinet reshuffle would not solve the problem.
"A Cabinet reshuffle must be carried out as the last resort. As the principal supporter of the government, Golkar deserves more seats in the Cabinet if there is to be a reshuffle," he said.
He defended the work of Susilo's economics team and the government's decision to raise fuel prices by an average of 126 percent on Oct. 1.
The President has said there will be no Cabinet reshuffle until he finishes reading the progress reports submitted by his aides. But a source within the presidential office said Susilo would drop three ministers, including Minister of Finance Jusuf Anwar.
Jusuf quickly denied the report.
"It's not true. I don't know where these rumors came from. I am still performing my state duties and always do my best," Jusuf told reporters before leaving a breaking-of-the-fast gathering hosted by Regional Representatives Council Speaker Ginandjar Kartasasmita, which Susilo also attended.
"It's up to the President. I've always to be prepared mentally for dismissal."
Jusuf said he enjoyed the full support of all the officials in his ministry.
"But I don't think it's possible to clean all the dirty plates in a year. It's impossible," he said.
Deputy secretary-general of the National Awakening Party (PKB), Zannuba Arifah Chafsoh Rachman, criticized Golkar and the Democrat Party for showing that they would do anything to gain power.
"The President should replace incompetent ministers with professionals who are accepted by the public and the markets. The parties supporting the government should be concerned with the people's suffering," she said.
Political analyst J. Kristiadi from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said inadequate political support from the House of Representatives had contributed to the government's problems.
"Susilo cannot effectively implement his policies because he is supported by only 33 percent of House members, and this is an unavoidable consequence of his nomination by a minority party," he said.
Kristiadi suggested that all sides, and the opposition bloc in particular, exercise patience and allow the government to work to the fullest during its remaining four years for the sake of the nation.