Jakarta, July 8 (Antara) -- The reshuffle of the working cabinet has
become a subject of public discourse over the past four months, but
President Joko Widodo has yet to make a statement on replacing his
ministers.
A few quarters are of the opinion that the ministers in the current
cabinet have not been able to perform in accordance with the president's
concepts of 'Nawacita' (a Sanskrit term for nine priority development
programs) and mental revolution yet.
Also, several policies issued are not pro-people and based on neither
Nawacita nor mental revolution, which Jokowi, as the president is fondly
called, intensively promoted during his presidential campaign last
year.
According to Boni Hargens, a political observer of the University of
Indonesia, there will be no problem if Jokowi reshuffles his cabinet, as
long as he does it properly and meets the target.
"Since the beginning, the president has stressed that mental revolution
should be the common motivation. Radical change is needed in
Indonesia's currently complicated situation. If reshuffling the cabinet
is the technical solution, it needs to be done to achieve the goal. I
think there will be no problem with that," Hargens had said on April 23.
In April, Vice President Jusuf Kalla had confirmed that the government
will reshuffle its current cabinet to improve its performance. "Yes, it
will be done as performance needs to be improved, and it will need
people with the required capabilities," he had stated in his office, but
had not mentioned when the reshuffle will take place.
However, a senior politician of the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party
of Struggle (PDIP), Eva Kusuma Sundari, opined that speculations
surrounding the cabinet reshuffle were only a public issue.
There was no talk of a cabinet reshuffle at the State Palace, according
to Sundari, who is an expert staff in the office of the state minister
for national planning/head of the national development planning board
(Bappenas).
"It is clear at the palace," she remarked during a
panel discussion here on Wednesday on the impacts of the reshuffle on
political dynamism and regional economies.
Sundari added that President Joko Widodo consistently evaluated the
working programs of his ministers and was aware of their performance.
"The president knows who among his ministers work well and who do not," she emphasized.
Unlike Sundari, Chief of the Presidential Communications Team Teten
Masduki pointed out that President Jokowi had indicated several times
that his cabinet will be reshuffled, but that he is still awaiting the
right time.
"The president has sent very clear signals that prove he will revamp
his cabinet, as part of efforts to improve the performance of the
government," Masduki stated at the Presidential Palace on Monday.
He added that the problem was related to the timing of the cabinet
reshuffle. Also, the names of ministers to be replaced have not been
specifically discussed yet.
Masduki affirmed that in time, the president will decide when the reshuffle will be carried out.
"No deliberations over the reshuffle have been conducted, but you all
already know there have been signs indicating a cabinet revamp," he told
journalists.
He further noted that the head of state had repeatedly hinted at a
reshuffle during various meetings with economists. However, when the
reshuffle will be conducted and which ministers will be replaced have
yet to be specifically discussed.
Moreover, Vice President Jusuf Kalla appealed to the public last week
to remain patient with regard to the issue of the cabinet reshuffle.
"Let us just wait," he stated when questioned about it in his office on Friday, July 3.
He declined to comment on who should be replaced and who will be involved in the cabinet reshuffle.
However, according to Speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly
Zulkifli Hasan, President Jokowi had agreed to not reshuffle his working
cabinet during the fasting month of Ramadan.
"I urged the president to focus on prioritizing issues related to the
prices of staple food items during Ramadan," he revealed after meeting
President Jokowi here on Friday.
It will be inappropriate to reshuffle the cabinet during the holy month
of Ramadan, as all ministers are doing their best to serve the people,
he claimed.
The fact that the cabinet members have been in office for only six
months also needs to be considered, he emphasized, adding that they were
making serious efforts to meet the performance targets.
"A cabinet reshuffle is not yet needed as the ministers have been
working hard to achieve their targets," he affirmed, adding that it
would be acceptable to reshuffle the cabinet once Ramadan ends.
In addition, a political observer is of the opinion that if the
reshuffle of the cabinet is certain, it should be done in October when
the new government will have been in power for precisely one year.
Ubedilah Badrun of Universitas Negeri Jakarta believes that if Jokowi
wants to reshuffle his cabinet, he should use the time before October to
look for the right men.
Replacements need to be considered for ministers in charge of political
affairs, security and the economy, Badrun pointed out.
"If President Joko Widodo is set to follow Bung Karno's concepts of Tri
Sakti and Nawacita, he should look for economists whose ideologies are
in line with the 1945 Constitution and with people's economy," he
emphasized.
Furthermore, Priyo Budi Santoso, a senior politician of the Golkar
Party, observed that the president's body language indicated that he
will soon conduct a cabinet reshuffle.
"As reshuffling the cabinet is the president's prerogative, he can do
it any time he wishes. I am predicting it will be done after Eid," he
remarked during a discussion at the parliament building on Wednesday.
Also, Head of the Economic and Public Policy Study Center of Gadjah
Mada University Tony Prasentiantono pointed out that the reshuffle of
the current economic ministers is the key to resolving problems in the
field and the weakening of the rupiah.
"The key to overcoming the economic problems is to conduct a reshuffle
and to find capable individuals. The coordinating minister for economic
affairs and the finance minister should have the ability to influence
market perception," he stressed on Thursday.
Moreover, Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives Fahri Hamzah
admitted that Jokowi needs to follow the example of former president
Soeharto and appoint trusted personnel in his cabinet.
"Like Soeharto, President Joko Widodo must recruit trusted personnel
with extraordinary capabilities," he stated on Wednesday.
Hamzah added that the head of state must fully trust his aides' work.
"Soeharto was able to remain in power for 32 years because he recruited
trusted persons and fully backed their programs," the legislator
explained.
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(T.A014/INE)EDITED BY INE(H-YH)(T.SYS/A/BESSR/A/Yosep) 08-07-2015 16:54:1 |
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