Megawati must assume more control

Megawati must assume more control

Kornelius Purba, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In a meeting with members of the Indonesian community in Tokyo
last month, President Megawati Soekarnoputri shared the secret of
how she manages the country, including restoring calm to the
economic and political chaos. She uses "housewife management",
she said, and she also told her Cabinet members to follow her
approach.

She revealed her strong faith in the delegation of authorities
to top aides, and that she was more interested in getting the
final results of their work rather than intervening in their day-
to-day duties.

She had teased her economic czar, Coordinating Minister for
the Economy Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti, who was often trapped in
complex economic theories when deciding the government's economic
policies. "Why not just adopt the housewife method," she said.

But now this "household" needs a more involved chief, at least
in leading the way for the President's aides.

Megawati is completely different from her predecessor
Abdurrahman Wahid, who was dismissed by the People's Consultative
Assembly (MPR) in July. Abdurrahman not only tended to intervene
in all of his ministers' policy-makings, but even made major
decisions without consulting them.

Abdurrahman also dismissed his ministers or top aides a number
of times. Since the reasons for the dismissals were not always
clear, it led people to believe that he replaced aides at whim.

While Abdurrahman was largely in confrontation mode with the
legislature, Megawati avoids potential conflict.

Her choice of M.A. Rachman as attorney general simply because
he was a career state prosecutor is a clear indication of how she
avoids friction with state bodies.

Megawati made clear her priorities: Economic revival,
restoration of political chaos, law enforcement and maintaining
the endangered territorial integrity.

She picked three men as her strongest aides: Dorodjatun,
Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Gen.
(ret) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and State Secretary/Cabinet
Secretary Bambang Kesowo to be in charge of administrative
affairs. She delegated her power and entrusted them to make major
decisions.

Over the past few months, however, disappointment has hovered
over the performance of these aides.

The appointment of Dorodjatun, the former Indonesian envoy to
the U.S. and dean of the School of Economics at the University of
Indonesia, initially won praise from the market. Now many doubt
his capability. During Cabinet meetings, he reportedly upsets the
ministers often with his lengthy sermons about economic strategy.

His idea about a possible debt-writeoff received strong
opposition from major lenders, including a direct remark from
Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

Look at the way Susilo handled the noisy and violent
demonstrations, including the "sweepings" against foreigners by
some radical groups protesting the U.S.-led attacks on
Afghanistan. He continued to issue warnings on the consequences
of the protests without taking firm action.

It was only after Megawati threatened to take over his role by
directly approaching the demonstrators -- as she reportedly told
a close advisor -- and to dismiss the police top brass that the
police acted on stopping the noisy demonstrations. The
demonstrators, including the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI),
clashed with police but public order was then restored.

Bambang professed that the President did not want to get
involved in details, including in her speech writing process, and
she makes final decisions after receiving input and advice from
her top aides.

Bambang practically acts like her chief of staff. She supports
his idea to return power to the State Secretariat, once described
as "a state within a state". In this scenario, Bambang would be
the only person in charge not only of the presidential office but
also the office of Vice President Hamzah Haz.

This is not taking place without any resistance, including
from the powerful military. Sources close to Megawati disclosed
that the military strongly protest Bambang's plan to abolish the
military secretary's post and downgrade it to deputy state
secretary.

A source said that during Megawati's visit to Tokyo last
month, Military Secretary Maj. Gen. Tubagus Hasanuddin, a member
of her entourage, approached her to protest a decision from
Bambang, who prohibited Hasanuddin from attending Cabinet
meetings. The military secretary has always attended the meetings
since Soeharto's rule.

Quoting the President, Bambang told Hasanuddin that she did
not want the military secretary's presence at the Cabinet
meetings. The general wanted to confirm the statement directly
with the President.

The source said that Megawati had told him: "I never forbade
the military secretary from attending the meeting. You are
expected to attend such important fora."

Having grown up in the palace as the daughter of first
president Soekarno, Megawati was quite familiar with her father's
inner circle of officials and the intrigue among those competing
to get close to Sukarno.

People have hoped that she would not repeat the mistakes of
her predecessors, including her father, who allowed themselves to
be misused by their trusted aides and others around them.

The mostly quiet President seems so far inaccessible to those
with vested interests, such as officials and businesspeople.
However, corrupt practices by palace officials, especially those
who were under Soeharto's regime, remain a threat to Megawati's
leadership.

Protocol officials are famous for their sophisticated way of
arranging meetings with the President, if necessary by holding a
ceremony where their "clients" would get an opportunity to talk
to the President. For instance, the seminar on drugs, featuring
the police top brass, opened on Monday at the palace, but had
been scheduled for next month.

Therefore, it is not impossible that old practices will
reoccur. Businesspeople or officials have been known to bribe
palace officials to obtain presidential decisions on business-
related policies prior to public announcement, or influence
people around the President to issue certain presidential decrees
or government decisions to benefit a business or other interest.

One notorious example was the "KISS" ke istana sendiri
sendiri, (going to the palace individually), referring to the
efforts of those who would meet secretly with the President
without the knowledge of their superiors. Ministers, generals or
other senior officials often asked Soeharto to approve their
respective policies even though the policy was opposed by their
immediate superiors.

Even now, visits to the palace are showing signs of the
familiar KISS, involving officials and businesspeople scurrying
for the President's favors, as also indicated by the
participation of a relative of a troubled tycoon in the entourage
to Tokyo.

To better lead her household and avoid past mistakes, Megawati
must take command of the Cabinet meetings and other major
political decisions, and not just delegate her aides to act on
her behalf.

She is more than capable of leading the country. But sooner or
later she may lose control on her government and the Cabinet if
she does not become more involved in day-to-day government
affairs.