Susilo must improve leadership style: Analyst

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

With or without a Cabinet reshuffle, the administration would not be effective unless President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono could improve his qualities as a leader, a leading political analyst told a discussion on Friday.

Ikrar Nusa Bhakti of the National Institute of Sciences (LIPI) said a Cabinet reshuffle would make little difference if the President failed to display leadership skills.

"If Susilo's style in managing his administration remains the same, no change will appear. We have a president, but not a leader" and Susilo's much-criticized indecisiveness was to blame, he said.

This inability to come to a quick decision was shown in Susilo's slowness to reform the Cabinet a year after taking office, despite an earlier pledge to do so, Ikrar said.

While a reshuffle was the President's prerogative, Ikrar said Susilo was relying too much on political parties to maintain support.

Pressure for the President to reshuffle Cabinet, especially the economics ministers, has been growing after skyrocketing inflation caused by the fuel price hikes has dampened growth and led to increased unemployment.

There is also concern that some ministers are abusing their positions to advantage their own business groups or families.

Political parties are currently engaged in lobbying the President over increased membership in Cabinet, while the president had earlier been in favor of professional rather than political appointees.

Burhanuddin Napitupulu, a Golkar Party leader, said the President was creating too many opportunities for discussions with political parties.

"He lets too many options in, opens too many doors for political parties to come in and make requests," he said. Burhanuddin said Golkar would most likely not submit any candidates to the President despite being the largest party in the House.

"Us being the largest party and having our chairman (Jusuf Kalla) as the Vice President is enough for us to influence the government's policies," Burhanuddin added.

Ikrar said the formation of a coalition Cabinet with a political contract seemed to be inevitable, but warned it was not something that the public wanted to witness.

"The public doesn't want to see if the parties support the President, but whether the promises (Cabinet) once bragged about will come true. These requests for ministerial posts will only add to the public's distrust of parties," he said.

Zulkiflimansyah, a deputy of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), agreed that a coalition Cabinet was unavoidable.

However, he believed that accommodating political parties was the only way a stable and viable Cabinet could be formed