PDI-P faction demands Cabinet reshuffle

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The House of Representatives' largest faction, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), has threatened to reject the 2003 draft state budget unless party chairwoman President Megawati Soekarnoputri replaces incompetent ministers in what amounts to the strongest call for a Cabinet reshuffle.

PDI Perjuangan faction chairman Roy B.B. Janis said on Monday that one-fifth of Megawati's 32-member Cabinet had to go.

"This is the right time for the President to reshuffle (the Cabinet) as several ministers have failed in their mission," Roy said during a news briefing.

"These ministers failed to take initiative and have continued to rely on the President's directives," he said. "This is tarnishing the President's image as a policymaker."

Asked whether the faction had raised this issue before the President, Roy said they had.

"She promised to consider our demand as soon as she got back from Africa."

Megawati is scheduled to visit the Johannesburg Earth Summit in South Africa next month, after which she plans to travel to Egypt, Poland and Bosnia.

Calls for a Cabinet reshuffle have simmered for some time.

These demands have come mainly from within PDI Perjuangan, whose members occupy four seats in the Cabinet.

The PDI Perjuangan ministers are State Minister of State Enterprises Laksamana Sukardi, Minister of Forestry Mohamad Prakosa, Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea and State Minister of National Development Planning/Bappenas chairman Kwik Kian Gie.

The party won the 1999 election, yet in the first 22 months it had to share the Cabinet with former president Abdurrahman Wahid, who co-founded the National Awakening Party (PKB).

Legislators dismissed Abdurrahman on charges of incompetency in July last year. Megawati, who succeeded him, however, refused to give her party full reign over the Cabinet.

Jostling for seats in the Cabinet is common among parties but so is suspicion that they tap state resources to fund their political campaign.

Analysts have long noted how ministers abuse their powers to shore up support for their respective parties.

The next general election is less than two years away.

Roy said the reason behind his faction's demand for a Cabinet reshuffle had nothing to do with the party's preparation for the 2004 general election. He said that some ministers needed to be replaced due to incompetence.

When pressed, Roy declined to name those ministers the faction deemed incompetent. He only said that the biggest failure concerned policies on the economy and politics.

Critics said Coordinating Minister for the Economy Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti failed to improve the economy at the grassroots level where much of Megawati's 1999 support stemmed from.

Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has been seen by many as incapable of stopping the violence in conflict-prone regions like Aceh, Poso in Central Sulawesi and Ambon in Maluku and failing to improve the country's poor law enforcement.

While analysts agree that politicking was likely behind the calls for a reshuffle, they also suggested that the apparent poor performance of some ministers had more to do with the lack of coordination from Megawati.

Top government officials played down chances of a reshuffle, saying that Megawati Soekarnoputri had not raised the issue.

Vice President Hamzah Haz said there was no reason for a changeover in the Cabinet, which was carrying out a sound job.

"I haven't heard of any complaints from the coordinating ministers about weak coordination among ministers," Hamzah said after a Cabinet meeting at the State Secretariat.

He pointed out that the Cabinet had set targets and it was up to the President to appraise the performance of each minister based on those targets.

"People may suggest a shake-up, but it's the President who has the final say," Hamzah said.

Susilo said he had also not heard of any plan to change members of the Cabinet.

"We'd better not speculate, there are plenty of problems we have to handle," he said, adding that it was the President's prerogative to reshuffle ministers.

The President, he said with a smile, repeatedly asked ministers to remain firm and improve their performances on issues they were dealing with.

Coordinating Minister for Peoples' Welfare Jusuf Kalla echoed Susilo's statement, saying "there will be no such thing as a reshuffle, I haven't heard anything about it".

Criticisms of Megawati's Cabinet:

* Weak law enforcement: Crime and corruption have become flagrant and widespread, with the government seen to be doing little or nothing to fight the problem.

* Corrupt judiciary: The source of legal controversies like the bankruptcy case involving PT Manulife Asuransi Jiwa Indonesia, and several high-profile trials.

* Confusing polices: Ministers issue contradictory statements leading to controversy over the import of chicken legs, the debt settlement plan and the ban on sand exports to Singapore.

* The International Monetary Fund (IMF): There is no common voice within the government on the need for the IMF. Although the official stand is to maintain relations with the IMF, at least one minister has questioned its presence.

* Illegal workers: The poor handling of returning illegal workers from Malaysia has underpinned criticism of a lack of coordination between ministers.

* Treasure hunt: Critics say a minister initiating a treasure hunt that endangered a protected historic site was unprofessional and an embarrassment to the Cabinet.

* Haze: Inadequate preparation to prevent the outbreak of choking smoke across Kalimantan and Sumatra point towards more poor coordination.