SBY, Kalla to hold weekly meeting

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) and Vice President Jusuf Kalla agreed to hold a weekly meeting on Mondays to evaluate the performance of the Cabinet, a move that apparently is also aimed at easing political rivalry between the two.

Susilo said that a regular evaluation would help improve the overall performance of the bureaucracy.

"The Vice President and I really want the bureaucratic machinery to run well," he said following a meeting with Kalla on Monday at the State Palace.

The new plan came amid growing signs that the Vice President, who is a wealthy businessman and was recently elected leader of the powerful Golkar Party, the largest political party in the House of Representatives, has been increasingly dominant in decision making process in various areas, unlike past vice presidents who were mostly relegated to performing a ceremonial role. This development has seemingly intensified the rivalry between the two.

Analysts earlier said that the rivalry between Susilo and Kalla had penetrated the top level of the bureaucracy, slowing down the implementation of various government policies.

A series of incidents, including one that led to the resignation of a top official at the Office of the Vice President, have often been cited as proof of the political rivalry between Susilo and Kalla.

Susilo has not specifically said that there would be division of work between him and the Vice President, as had been suggested by some analysts to help defuse the situation.

Susilo said that what he wanted to see was a bureaucratic machinery -- from the highest to the lowest level -- working with "the same culture, pace and responsibility."

Susilo, who won the country's first ever direct presidential election in September, received strong criticism after his Cabinet team failed to live up to expectations in many areas during the first 100 days of the new administration.

The current administration is facing challenging tasks ahead including attracting new investment and eradicating rampant corruption to help boost the country's economic growth to an average rate of 6 percent per year and provide more jobs for the millions of unemployed.

Meanwhile, Kalla said that the weekly evaluation of the Cabinet would help ensure that each ministry implements its respective agenda.

"Every Monday, we will talk about all the work (of the Cabinet members)," said the Vice President, following the President's brief press conference.

Elsewhere, Susilo complained about the slow progress of reform within the bureaucracy.

"It is very disturbing that the bureaucracy does not work well although the Cabinet ministers have attempted to implement good governance and efficiency," he asserted.

Susilo added that he had met with governors across the country to seek ways to accelerate reform.