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Next Cabinet likely to promote political parties' interests
Indonesia's largest Muslim organizations, Nahdhatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, predict President Yudhoyono's second-term Cabinet will work based on the interests of its political parties
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ndonesia's largest Muslim organizations, Nahdhatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, predict President Yudhoyono's second-term Cabinet will work based on the interests of its political parties.
Masduki Budlowi, an NU activist, told The Jakarta Post on Monday the domination of parties in the next Cabinet would result in the accommodation of political desires, rather than the people's interests.
He said this effect would oppose the expectation of most Indonesians, as they had demanded the transformation of the current political conditions in the recent election.
Masduki, the former deputy chairman of the House of Representatives' Commission X, overseeing education, youths, sports, tourism, arts and culture affairs, said the next Cabinet would not perform better than the previous one.
"We can reflect on the past. The domination of parties in the past created rampant corruption and bureaucratic problems," he said.
"Yudhoyono was unable to ignore the political parties that had supported him during the election."
As of Monday, Yudhoyono has interviewed 36 potential candidates to fill his next Cabinet. Twenty out of the 36 candidates interviewed from Saturday to Monday were politicians rather than professionals.
Yudhoyono said the candidates interviewed on Saturday and Sunday were to hold both ministerial and non-ministerial posts.
Muhammadiyah Youth chairman Muhammad Izzul Muslimin agreed that party domination would affect Yudhoyono's political decisions and the Cabinet's work would be based on parties' interests, but said it would have a positive impact
"Yudhoyono used to argue with Vice President Jusuf Kalla in the previous Cabinet. That will not happen again in the next Cabinet, which will work based on united views, as most parties coalesce with SBY."
He added that although the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) had never stated it would cooperate with Yudhoyono, the appointment of PDI-P chief patron Taufik Kiemas as the People's Consultative Assembly speaker, would force SBY and Kiemas to cooperate.
"They will work together based on the give-and-take mechanism."
Izzul said as there was not much opposition to Yudhoyono, things might work more smoothly. "Structural factors in the next Cabinet will not hamper SBY's administration."
Muhammadiyah Youth secretary-general Sudar Siandes was pessimistic that the next Cabinet would perform strongly.
"Some ministerial candidates are not familiar with posts they are likely to hold," he said.
"SBY should name the next cabinet *the Cabinet of United Parties', as parties are united together to work for their interests." (nia)
