House Speaker joins calls for Susilo to shake up Cabinet

House Speaker joins calls for Susilo to shake up Cabinet

Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

House Speaker Agung Laksono has joined the chorus of demands for
President Susilo Bambang to reshuffle his Cabinet in order to
improve his government's performance.

"I am aware that the public demands for a Cabinet reshuffle
are on the rise. People are pinning their hopes on the government
and I would like to see this being responded to. The government
will be unable to fulfill the people's expectations given the
current situation. A new departure is necessary," Agung said
after greeting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono during the Idul
Fitri festival at the State Palace on Thursday.

Agung said the President should reshuffle his cabinet to allow
the government to speed up the implementation of the economic
recovery program promised by the President during his election
campaign last year.

Recent surveys conducted by the Indonesian Survey Circle and
Kompas daily revealed dissatisfaction with the performance of
Susilo's government after one year, especially his decision to
hike fuel prices. Both surveys recommended that the President
reshuffle his Cabinet in order to improve the government's
showing.

Political parties supporting the government have also hinted
at a Cabinet reshuffle, which they said would enable the
President to make changes and improve public welfare.

Susilo has so far been tightlipped over a Cabinet reshuffle,
although he has completed the evaluation of his ministers'
performances.

The Prosperous Justice Party said recently that the President
would reshuffle his Cabinet soon after Idul Fitri.

When asked about the urgency for a Cabinet reshuffle, Agung
underlined that people were waiting not just for changes in the
Cabinet, but also the government's performance.

"The President needs to reshuffle his Cabinet in order to
boost his government's performance. Regarding who gets which
portfolio, that's the President's prerogative," said Agung, who
is also the deputy chairman of the Golkar Party.

He said his party had no idea about any new cabinet lineup.

But Agung suggested that the President not replace his
economic team led by Golkar figure Aburizal Bakrie because the
real problems lay in the legal, political and environmental
fields.

Golkar recently proposed a swapping of posts among ministers,
instead of a Cabinet reshuffle.

Another Golkar deputy chairman, Syamsul Mu'arif, denied
accusations that Golkar opposed a Cabinet reshuffle, saying only
that a small group in the party supported Aburizal's presence in
the Cabinet.

"The demand for a Cabinet reshuffle is very strong in Golkar
and as a major political supporter of the government, the party
wants at least eight seats in the Cabinet," Syamsul said.

He added that the President should listen to the PKS's recent call
for a Cabinet reshuffle. Without support from the Muslim-based
party, the government would not have a majority in the House.

The PKS had recently threatened to withdraw its support for
the government because of its unpopular policies over the past
year, particularly its decision to raise fuel prices by an
average 126 percent in October. The PKS agreed to increases, but
said it was shocked by their eventual size.