Susilo quits as top security minister

Susilo quits as top security minister

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has finally decided to quit as
coordinating minister for political and security affairs. He
sent President Megawati Soekarnoputri his letter of resignation
on Thursday morning.

However, the President's response to Susilo's resignation from
the cabinet is still unclear.

To most of us, Susilo's exit came as no major surprise. News
on the row between Megawati and Susilo had spread over the past
few days.

Realizing he had been sidelined from the cabinet, Susilo wrote
the president a letter, seeking clarification of his duties and
responsibilities as the top security minister. He also asked for
time to meet with the President to discuss the matter.

Megawati did not respond to the letter until Thursday. In
light of that, most people would accept the action Susilo ended
up taking -- resigning from his post.

It is worth noting that ministers of the Megawati-Hamzah Haz
government are members of the current coalition or Mutual-Self-
Help (Gotong Royong) Cabinet. Although Megawati had the
prerogative to chose any ministers she liked, she appointed her
ministers based on this principal. This rainbow cabinet means
ministers were chosen not only from among professionals but also
from among political party leaders and members.

As such, it is likely that ministers will continue to emerge
as contenders for the presidency and vice presidency in the
future. -- Republika, Jakarta