PDI-P faction demands Cabinet reshuffle

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.